Festering Evil: Shattered Past Book 4

Playwrights Twist

SIVA had been spreading all throughout the Cosmodrome and the Plaguelands, many guardians, had seen the substance and received strict orders from the Vanguard not to go there. Ever since the outbreak had been recognized the entire area was off limits to guardians. Upgrade had taken notice of the lack of patrols going through the Cosmodrome and other locations close to it. He believed the Vanguard to be foolish for doing so, while they were preventing the deaths of their men, they were allowing him to continue his plan. For the moment he was sitting down on one of the thrones that were constantly changing their designs.

He was troubled. It may have been several years since he'd last seen them, but it appeared as if James and Cameron were growing stronger with each day that had passed. And he was in part to blame. He slumped in the chair resting his hands on his chin looking up at the still unfinished ceiling.

How could they become that powerful? He thought to himself. It wasn't the first time that he had born witness to such an outward explosion of power. Upgrade found himself overwhelmed by a sense of dangerous curiosity. He, somehow, someway, made them strong enough to fight him one on one, and cause significant damage. Perhaps this was the reason why he was going through with his plan, why he wanted to destroy the city and all who James cared about: to test James' strength. His subconscious was working to figure it out when his consciousness wasn't.

The biggest question was, where did it come from? Upgrade stood up from the chair and started walking toward a wall of monitors. Each of them was playing a part after his first encounter with James. He'd kept these recordings and kept an eye on him for a long time, experimenting for five years during his sleep, attempting to find out what triggered his transformation and what didn't. Giving him a variety of dreams and nightmares was the only way he could stay hidden from his immune systems.

Through his dreams and memories, he'd learned a lot about James and his family, and what he treasured above everything. "Well, I think it's about time I captured my person of interest." He said to himself pinching his clawed hands together. He walked over to a button that was close by, exposing the comms transmissions to the Vanguard and hopefully, James himself.

"Vosik, are you there?" Upgrade called to his servant.

"Yes master, what is required of me?"

"Love the ring to that, anyway, yes I was just going to ask you how our progress goes with our little experiment down in the Silo." He replied.

"Progress has been well master; things appear to be moving ahead of schedule."

"Excellent, keep me posted on anything that develops or changes."

"Yes, master," Vosik replied before Upgrade deactivated the comms and their exposure.

"Now, James," He said maniacally to himself. "Act two is about to begin."

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Saladin looked over to James after a few moments of standing out looking toward the Plaguelands, his face was grim. "My ghost just picked up something James, experiments are going on down in Bunker Triglav." He told him. "I need you to disrupt anything that may be going on down there, understood?"

"Yes, Lord Saladin." He replied sprinting towards the side of the mountain, casting himself off like a man diving into the ocean below. He engaged his invictus form and flew off for the Plaguelands as fast as his transformation would allow.

"What do you think they're doing down there?" Ghost asked him telepathically.

"I don't know, but it can't be anything good," James replied grimly. He hovered over the Plaguelands looking around for anything resembling a rocket silo. All the while Upgrade was watching him from a distance, so far away that James looked like nothing but a flicker of a candle. He wanted to understand this person more than anything else, to understand his power, and harness it to further his own goals.