Chapter Twenty-Five
Elaine Rowe Live from Her Studio in Naguela
Elaine Row’s signature news jingle played over a sweeping intro graphic that led to her special news report.
“Good afternoon, I am your host, Elaine Rowe, and I am here today to deliver a special report in the wake of the Costaluna attack. This vicious, emotionless strike on an innocent city brings into question the wicked intentions that Estrean president Ruben Ladron has for the country. Is it worth harming so many innocent civilians to demonstrate your claim on a stretch of land?
“Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to drive slightly into the realm of conspiracy here. I'm resorting to this line of thinking because my research team and I have analyzed the alliances in this war for hours.
“You see, the Naguelean and Estrean war started long before two presidents bickered over who deserves claim to a piece of land. Ladron and Secada were engaged in a bitter family rivalry ever since they were teenagers. Both families were competitive, with their parents wanting their successors to validate their efforts. The two boys would become presidents of their respective countries, and this took their competition to the political field. In this arena, they make decisions that affect the lives of millions, merely to one-up the other side.
“It’s here where the two sides took a turn for the worse, aligning at opposite sides of two global superpowers. That is the United States and Xopren.
“Ladies and Gentlemen, do you think it’s any coincidence that the moment Naguela strikes a deal with the U.S and COG sends an immortal to the country that President Secada suddenly passes away from a heart attack?
“When you look at the deals the U.S has struck with both Naguela and Estrea, it’s clear to see that the U.S benefits far more from its deal with the Estreans. This gives Estrea the incentive to demand favors from America, and from COG.
“I’m not here to point any fingers, nor will I make accusations. All I ask is that people question everything. Particularly the push to label Solace as terrorists. I myself was once America’s most beloved news reporter. And now, after falling on the bad side of COG, the American media continues to run stories about my previous drug habits, and the exes that claim I was abusive and toxic. Heck, one magazine article referred to me as the overweight anchorwoman. A desperate attempt to associate my body shape with the quality of my work, as if they are connected in any way.
“Why do you think this is the case?
“Ask yourselves what would make a group of activists want to eradicate the immortals. What could Zip have done to push someone to do such a thing?
“Could it be that COG and the Immortals are playing a dirty game in foreign politics? A dirty game that will only put innocent Americans at risk of retribution from provoked nations.
“When I get back from the commercial, I’m going to go through the incidents I have covered in the past, such as the Red Hound’s Slaughter in Oshela. Let’s read the clues and see how everything leads to what happened in Naguela.”
*
Declan Holmes - The Brown Mustache Cafe - Annapolis, Maryland
Declan hit pause on Elaine Rowe’s report right before she went to the commercial break. Unfortunately for her, there would be no ad dollars coming from his viewership. Declan glanced over at Erin to read her reaction to the broadcast.
“Rowe better be careful. She may have fled the country, but COG agents are all over Naguela. They’re frothing at the mouth to make an example of her and groups like Solace,” Erin said. She beamed back at Declan, waiting to hear his take.
“Sure, she’s under fire right now. But—”
“But what?”
“Don’t you think she has a point? Our government is out there making enemies, leaving the American people vulnerable. Xopren gets stronger by the day. Why do we need to chase them around the world bullying them? We have problems to fix on our own soil.”
Erin settled gracefully into her seat, her gaze intent on Declan. He was certain she would decipher his thoughts in an instant. Sharp and astute, Erin possessed a razor-edged eloquence, making her an unparalleled political strategist. “Holmes, don’t tell me you’re seriously considering campaigning for the presidency? I mean, you’re adored at the senate office, don’t get me wrong. But this might be a little out of your league. And if you’re thinking that being outspoken against COG or the immortals is a good campaign strategy, well, I’d say you’ve lost your mind.”
Declan beamed at her. “No candidate wins the presidency by feeding the public what they’re used to hearing, Erin. The Red Hounds leak opened the public’s eyes to something earlier this year. It showed that COG and those immortal freaks have dirt on them. And the polls say the public is tired of COG’s power trip. They’ve been operating above the government for far too long. I think the American people would be all for reigning them in and spending our tax dollars on more substantial matters.”
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
Erin offered the slightest nod of approval. “I see you’ve put some thought into this. But why are you coming to me? You can’t possibly want me to run your campaign.”
“Who else but you? You got Bryce elected as mayor of Baltimore, for Christ’s sake.”
“Honey, I don’t think you can afford me.” Erin sneered.
Declan Holmes leaned forward in his seat. “You make me president, and the winning bonus will be enough to retire your whole family.” He drained the remains of his coffee cup in one gulp.
*
Zella Mills - Solace Hideout - Naguela
The news of the EnigmaCore clearly distressed Khloe. Her arms folded as she paced back and forth across the room, shaking her head. “Something like that cannot exist. We can’t sit by and allow this trade to go down. If we go there, our mission needs to be to destroy that thing. Nobody deserves that much power. I mean, isn’t it why we’re all so heavily against the Seers? Power in the wrong hands only hurts the innocent people who just want to live their lives.”
“But baby,” Joe Halili said, “If we go there and destroy whatever this thing is, we’ll be making powerful enemies.”
“We have no shortage of those,” Zella said.
“Getting on Xopren’s bad side could be a death sentence,” Joe said. “Don’t forget, the Xopren mafia is all over South America. Not to mention, Raul would probably never sell us cheap firepower again.”
“I guess another option is to go along with the mission and have it destroyed later,” Zella said.
Khloe continued to shake her head. “We let them take that thing and the chances are we’ll never see it again. And then the war will grow more savage than it already is. Tensions with America will rise. We’ll be looking at a world war in no time.” Khloe made a valid point.
“Well, if the plan is the is to take that thing out, we’ll need more support,” Zella said. “How about we call in Tay and Chi? They owe us.”
“No,” Khloe snapped. “Tay maybe. But we’re not letting Chi get a whiff of this.”
“Not all hackers are bad,” Zella said. “There are ethical hackers. And Chi helped big time at Costaluna.”
“She’s with the Phantoms, Z!” Khloe said. “Divulging to her means potentially exposing the secret to their entire network. We'd be opening Pandora's box.” She exhaled sharply; her frustration evident. “I'll go assist Elias and Lola with the TV setup. I need time to ponder this. Just give me half an hour.”
Joe’s eyes fell on Zella once Khloe left the room. “Jeez, she didn’t take that well. She has a right to be worried, though. Feels like stuff just keeps getting worse every day. There’s always another big bad to deal with.” Zella smiled back at him. “What’s your take on all of this, Z? What do you really think we should do about that Enigma thing?”
“Wanna talk about it in my room?” she asked him.
“W-what? Oh, sure. Why not?”
Zella could feel Halili following close behind her as they stepped through the passage leading to her room. She let Halili through the door and shut it softly behind him.
“My gut tells me we should go along with what Raul asked for,” Joe said. “It will open the door for us to learn more about this thing before deciding to destroy it, ya know?”
Zella turned to face him. “Do you really wanna talk about this now?”
Joe swallowed excessively and rubbed his neck. “Um. Yeah, I do. Wait, Zella, are you okay?”
She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She walked over to the window and opened it, suddenly becoming desperate for air. Her eyes glossed over the bouncy ADHD ball on the window surface. She took it into her possession and juggled it. With relief from the fresh air, she turned back to Halili. “I have conflicting thoughts about the whole thing,” she said. “I agree we should follow Raul’s lead for now. But then, if we are going to destroy the thing at some point, doing it at the exchange would be the perfect time. The downside is that we have such little time to plan for it.”
She tossed the ball to Joe Halili, who stretched over towards her bed to catch it. “We’ll wait and see what Khloe’s last take is before deciding. She’s a former intelligence officer, after all,” said Joe, bouncing the ball off the wall. “She’s valuable here.”
Zella nodded, her cheeks burning. “That she is.”
*
Hubert Quinn - Calloway’s Fortress, São Paulo, Brazil
Quinn reveled in Marina’s agonized cries echoing from behind him, amplified by the cruel grip Jade had on her hair. “You believed you were safe, didn’t you?” he said, stepping through the dimly lit property once more. “You were convinced that distance would shield you, that no one would ever trace you back to Calloway’s history.”
“Probably thought we were too stupid to connect her with the person who killed one of our own,” Jade added. She tugged on the bundle of hair in her grasp and heard Marina’s screams echo through the room.
“For your sake, I hope this works,” Quinn said.
Jade hauled Marina ruthlessly towards the biometric scanner. Marina's voice was a broken whisper, “Please... no.” Desperately, she went limp, becoming a dead weight, in a futile attempt to resist being forced against the scanner.
Jade showed the raw strength possessed by a Starfalite enhanced being, lifting Marina off her feet effortlessly. She pushed her face against the scanner until it beeped.
The beep, however, was a rejection. A red notice flashed up on the biometric interface.
It read: Keep your eyes open and try again.
“Hold her steady,” Quinn instructed. With a brutal force, he delivered an ear-splitting smack across Marina’s face. A guttural sound of pain released from Marina’s lips; her eyes now wide with terror. Quinn grabbed her by the back of the head and pressed her face back against the scanner.
This time the biometric display blinked green. This resulted in the doors slowly sliding open with a pressurized release. Quinn lifted Marina’s chin with the proximal joint of his index finger. “Was that so hard?”
Jade pushed Marina forward, letting her almost trip on the stairs leading down into the laboratory. Unlike the rest of the house, the lab was fully powered. It made sense that a mad scientist would have his lab powered by a source independent of the home’s mains. Quinn flipped a switch, and the place lit up like Christmas. A grin found its way across his face. All the answers finally lay ahead.
-Mere Immortal is written by Gary Swift. If you see this on another website under another name, then someone has plagiarised it. Visit mereimmortal.com for official chapters. Subscribe to the Substack paid tier to support the creation of this project.
-This version of Mere Immortal is written in US English.