The Ouroboros Cycle

Epilogue: Ouroboros

AFTER

— - —

A long black car pulled around to the entrance of a sprawling business campus, and was met at the door by a man in a sleek black suit. The driver parked and came around to open the door, and Calvin stepped out of the vehicle. His hair was grey and his eyes held weight, but his gaze was sharp and his blue suit was crisp and clean. The man who met him was younger, the Foundation’s newest site director. When Calvin had stood and adjusted his coat, the man approached him and extended a hand.

“Good morning, Overseer,” the man said behind a genial smile. “Welcome to Site-108. We’re thrilled to be hosting you.”

Calvin smiled meekly and shook the man’s hand. “It’s my pleasure, Director House,” he responded. “Gives me the opportunity to knock out two birds with one stone, so to speak. Apologies for the delay in getting out here - current events have been keeping me tied down elsewhere.”

House nodded solemnly. “So I’ve heard. A team from Site-17 arrived this morning - I believe they came straight from the crash site.”

Calvin winced. “Indeed. I suppose I should try and talk to them first, before we kick things off.” He looked down at his watch. “Have the others arrived yet?”

House pulled his phone from his pocket and leafed through a document. “The directors have all arrived, as have all the Overseers except… O5-2.”

Calvin nodded. “She’ll be arriving shortly. Inform me when she does.”

House nodded, and promptly escorted Calvin into the main lobby of Site-108. They were followed by Calvin’s security detail, who had finished sweeping the site and now fell in behind him. They entered a secure wing of the site, and before too long had reached a small conference room off the main hub of that area. House gestured towards the door and stepped aside.

“My team is available if you ever need anything,” he said. “Please don’t hesitate to let us know if you do.”

Calvin nodded in response, and House turned down the hallway and disappeared. Calvin passed through the door to the conference room, which was abuzz with the response team he had created in the wake of the crash. To the man, they looked exhausted. When he entered, the team leader - an up-and-coming doctor named Tori Lang, approached him.

“Overseer,” she said, bowing slightly. “Good to see you.”

Calvin smiled. “And you as well, Doctor Lang. Forgive me for my tardiness, my security team was perhaps too cautious in our approach.”

Lang nodded swiftly. “Of course, sir. Given the circumstances, the caution is appropriate. We only arrived earlier this morning.”

Calvin looked up at the projected screen in front of them. Flashing across it were pictures of a crater with the twisted wreckage of a jetliner still smouldering inside. In every picture there were members of the Foundation response teams poring over the site. He squinted at the screen.

“Loss of life?” he asked.

“Minimal, fortunately,” Lang said, handing him a folder. “The flight team was small, just three pilots, a mechanic, and a four-man security detail. Another casualty from where the wing landed - here,” she pointed to a picture of a farmhouse that had been cut nearly in two by falling debris, “and then two more civilians we had to terminate after they were exposed to the anomaly while looking through the wreckage before we got there.”