It took a few hours before her body was picked up. First, she was dragged by the feet, her eyes wide open. Then she was slung unto a pile of limbs clad in red. Around the tower of corpses, the ground had taken the color of wine: a messy sludge of shredded flesh, blood and slush. On the battlefield, those employed to clean out the mess had seen it all before. Lucky were they, that the cold air prevented the stench of death from spreading. They worked tirelessly, as they always did, leaving no trace behind. Soon these towers would burn returning the bodies to the ground. An undisturbed peace would return, as the silence buried the untold story of the end of Centrum Agricultio.

It was shortly after the bombing of Nova Terra, that the army had descended on Senex Centralis: the university searched through and through. There had been rumors that two of the bombers had ties that educational institution. The government would have known about it, they had fostered these ties. Ted had guessed that Hardi Eyer was harboring the criminals responsible for the annihilation of the capital: a game of cat and mouse ensued.

Hiding in Antarticum was an impossible feat.

The Gods could see everything.

God holds everyone hostage, in his clasp of iron and hope.

You can run, but you can not hide, Eva thought.

During the raid at the university, Eva had patiently watched her father kill every Aethereusians on the premises. Aggravated she waited. He was slow to move. Too slow for her. Things had been at a stand still far too long. Fiori had made his move; it was now their turn to make theirs. This was a game, she knew it. There could only be one winner. Loosing was not an option. God did not forgive: to win was to live.

Eva was ready.

Everyone working for Project EDEN was ready.

But General Marshall didn’t seem as committed as he once had been.

The announcement had been made on public television. The government of Antarticum was in possession of the first perfected human super weapon. It was supposed to scare the people. It was supposed to keep them in line. It was supposed to show the world and the control islands that Antarticum was a force to be reckon with. Then the bombing happened. Evian had not told them about that bombing. Evian had failed to warn them about his sister’s suicidal plan. Evian had also failed to retrieve his younger brother. Evian had lost a helicopter and 3 men. Evian had lost an entire city. Evian had always been a thorn to her side.

But she needed him.

They all needed him.

Eva stood on the ground of Centrum Agricultio, surrounded by debris and bodies. She frowned when she noticed how filthy her shoes were. Filth. She hated filth. Her days at Nova Urbi had been trying. That forsaken place still haunted her. It was too cold, too hot. It was dirty. She thanked Hana every day for rescuing Fenn. After his great escape, no longer needed there, she had been extradited. Every time Nova Urbi popped up in her mind, she had a burning urge to scratch herself, to scrub herself, to clean her body.

She shrugged and pushed back that memory.

She walked over to the pile of mingled bodies, a photograph in her hand. It didn’t take long for her to spot the fiery red hair amongst the casualties. She got closer, as satisfaction spread through her body. She stepped on top of a dead man to reach higher, sticking the heel of her boots on the side of his head. She pushed back a strand of wet hair from the waxy figure. There was no doubt. Ashe O’Donnell had been eliminated. She was but a small consolation price, as Evian had escaped. But it was one less name on her list.

She took a handkerchief out of her pocket and cleaned her hands.

Her father, the general, was still barking orders. Barking was a specialty of him. For a second, she felt sorry for his soldiers, but then remembered they were not worth her sympathy. They were Aethereusians who should have been eliminated… not given powerful weapons and integrated into the army.

She carefully folded back the picture and tucked it into the inner pocket of her black cloak. She took out a small notebook and very carefully crossed out Ashe’s name. She ran her fingers over the other names and lingered over Fiori’s name. He had been her father’s most trusted soldier, but he had also been her father’s demise. She didn’t know if she should thank him for that or not. She hated her father. Not because of what he had done, but for everything he hadn’t done. Her father was soft. Unworthy to lead. He valued meritocracy, at the cost of his own success.

The day Fiori Falx, an outsider, was named General, her father had been sent into a frenzy. He had long been considered, the next in line. He was well decorated. He had friends in all the right places. Yet, in the end, Falx had been bestowed the honor. Falx was also very well decorated, but more importantly, Falx was feared. Not by his soldiers. General Falx had adoration and trust from his men. General Falx was feared by the government and the influential people making decision in the sphere above. General Falx was conniving. General Falx did not mind getting his hands dirty. Rumors had it, Fiori Falx was in fact responsible for the assassination of the previous General. Fiori Falx was named General because it is a wise thing to keep your friends close, and your enemies closer. Fiori Falx was that enemy.

Eva had met Fiori Falx on many occasions before. He was definitively an interesting man. It was easy to understand why people were so enthralled by his charism. He was a good-looking man. He spoke well. He could capture his audience’s imagination and heart. But he was also a man of action. The current leader of Project EDEN had quickly noticed him and recruited him to train Fenn for assassination purposes. He did well. Well enough to be invited to join a select group of masterminds behind Project EDEN. Not so much in charge of the weapon itself, but in charge of his safe keeping. His time with Project Eden had been short, but particularly productive. He had led four very successful assassinations, getting ride of troublesome people. If knowledge was a key, he wanted to make sure, no one else could unlock the door. Anyone suspected of knowledge had to be eliminated. Fiori Falx volunteered. Fenn Li and Eva Marshall had been assigned to him. Together they committed these gruesome murders. Then Fiori Falx suddenly disappeared. Taking with him, some of the force’s strongest soldiers… and a lot of knowledge.

With Fiori Falx gone, her father had finally been named General. But Fiori remained a thorn at his side. Always outdoing, always outsmarting her father. She long cursed that day on the shore of Antarticum, where for the only time ever, her father showed clemency. He should have shot him dead instead.

Lost in her thoughts, she joined up with General David. J. Marshall. She stood by his side, like she always did. The disdain she harbored did not show. She stood there like a well-behaved little girl. An obedient child who served to please. But deep down, she was being patient. She was waiting for the right opportunity.

Patience, she thought.

She took a deep breath.

Her turn would come. Everything she had done in the past 18 years would pay off. The suffering. The self-control. It would all have been worth it.

She took another deep breath. Her father was still barking.

She wanted to cover her ears. To block the sound of his voice. She hated his voice. Always barking… commending fear… killing people… killing more people… but never the right people. Never when it mattered. Always cowering at the last minute. Barking. Barking some more.

He had failed to kill Fiori. He had also failed to kill Evian.

He should have killed Evian that day the child was found covered in the blood of his own parents. He should have killed him.

He could have used her instead. Use her Heighten Characteristic. She had made her proof. She had always been obedient. She had always done what had been asked of her. So why him? Why had he preferred him? Why had he taken that kid into Project EDEN? That kid who had never done anything for him, for them…

The preparations were ready. It was time to move again. The signal had been sent a while ago. By now the fugitive would be confused. But more importantly, the signal had permitted them to locate Yuki. General Falx had had all signals deactivated before deserting but that was a long time ago. New applications had since been developed: better, more useful applications. There was no point for them to run. Within a fifty kilometers radius, once activated, signals could be tracked. The activation was problematic though. Without anaesthesia, it was particularly painful: akin to an electrical surcharge in the brain. It was risky too. The device was not meant to undergo such a shock. It had during trial, exploded more than once, killing the soldier. But in this case, it was a win-win situation. Either Yuki survived and the signal would reveal their location, or they died and one more name could be crossed off the list.

Eva smiled. Soon she’d be reunited with Fenn. She couldn’t wait to see his reaction. Did he still think of her? She couldn’t wait to see what had happened since the day Hana rescued him. To see how his Heighten Characteristic had developpe. Fenn was a killer just like her. He had cold bloodedly killed Hana. He was an assassin. He was a wanted criminal. She couldn’t help to feel proud. She couldn’t help to think that it was all thank to her. She had given so much to Project EDEN. She had given years of her life. She had given her youth, her childhood. She had lived in Nova Urbi to be by Fenn’s side. She had done well. He had become just as she had hoped. Now it was time to bring him home. It was time to welcome him back to Project EDEN. It was time for him to become a human super weapon, to take his place amongst the few.

Her excitement grew bigger.

Soon, she thought. Patience is a virtue.