Anton nodded.
He picked up the sword and drew it from its scabbard. The blade was majestic, flawless and beautifully balanced; he flourished it, the katana felt like a natural extension of his arm.
‘Remarkable,’ Gang said. ‘You look just like your grandfather when I first met him.’
Anton lowered the sword, ‘I do?’
‘He has the Black Dragon.’
Anton returned the sword to its scabbard, placed it back in the case, and asked, ‘how many of these swords are there?’
‘Li’s maternal ancestor, Kanenaga Yoshindo, made five swords during the winter of 1675. They were forged from iron drawn from a fallen meteor and are stronger and sharper than any other swords. There are the three here, the Green, White and Blue Dragons identified by an emerald, diamond, and a blue sapphire respectively. Arthur Slayne carries the Black Dragon, which has a lustrous black pearl in the handle.’
Gang paused, stroking his chin, ‘and then there is the fifth sword, the Red Dragon, marked with a dark ruby the color of blood.’
‘Who has it?’
‘Chloe Armitage.’
‘Why on earth does she have it?’
‘The Red Dragon was given to the Emperor of Japan in 1676, apparently the Imperial family later gifted it to a traveler in 1897.’
Anton shook his head in disgust.
How does she do that? She has everything that she needs.
Anton frowned, taking a deep breath, ‘you expect that I will need this sword to fight her.’
‘It’s inevitable. She has some dark purpose of her own that involves you. We need to thwart that purpose, and you need a weapon that is the equal of what she carries to stand a chance.’
‘Well, unless her purpose is to see a lot of dead vampires, I don’t see how my being a member of the Order of Thoth is going to work out well for her.’
Gang shook his head, ‘she is subtle, very subtle. In all things remotely associated with her, you must be fully aware of what the consequences are.’
The table fell silent.
‘One more for the road,’ Gang said, pouring each of them a final shot.
They downed their drinks and Gang said, ‘now everyone to bed, breakfast will be at 7:30 in the garden. It will be our last breakfast here, so don’t be late.’
Anton and Li both gave their assent and went to their rooms.
As they walked down the hallway together, Li suddenly turned and hugged Anton fiercely.
She stood on tiptoes, whispering into his ear, ‘thank you, Anton, for looking after us tonight.’
She kissed him quickly on the cheek, then broke away and went into her room closing the door behind her.
‘Uh, sure, no problem -’ Anton said, and realized that he was speaking to an empty hall.
Anton went to the bathroom, and then to bed. He found himself staring at the ceiling, his mind replaying Li’s embrace, and his cheek tingling with the sensation of her kiss.
And with that in mind, Anton drifted quietly into sleep.
* * *
Chloe Armitage met privately with Cornelius Crane in his chambers on the 104th floor of the Citadel.
She declared, ‘the Boston cell will run later today, their current position is no longer tenable.’
Cornelius arched a quizzical eyebrow, ‘you believe that they will seek Mirovar, and draw him and his followers out into the open?’
‘Yes, Cornelius.’
He smiled, ‘it is good to see that you are on track with the promise that you made in Jerusalem.’
‘Yes, I will have this wrapped up within the week.’
‘Francis Mirovar and his team are no easy marks, what is your plan?’
‘We will track the Wus to ground, and create a perimeter with Shadowstone forces; we will keep our vampire forces nearby, and then attack once Mirovar arrives.’
‘You will be fighting on a ground of their choosing, that suggests a tactical disadvantage, have you accounted for that?’
‘It is inevitable that the ground will be chosen by the Order, but also necessary, Mirovar will not step into an obvious trap, we have to give them the ground to create confidence that they have the initiative.’
‘... “And therefore, those skilled in war bring the enemy to the field of battle and are not brought there by him”.’ Cornelius said.
‘Sun Tzu, from the Art of War. You see my strategy here?’ Chloe asked rhetorically.
Cornelius frowned, ‘of course, but there will be losses. How many of my praetorians do you plan to sacrifice on this mission?’
Time to ask for what will not be given.
Chloe shook her head, ‘I cannot guarantee that any engagement with the Order will be without casualties. To ensure success, I will need twelve praetorians, four to engage the Wus and eight with me to engage Francis Mirovar and his team.’
Crane stared at her, frowning, ‘you will have six, and no more. We both know how you excel at combat; I expect to see blood on your blade when you return to my Citadel.’
Chloe responded to Crane’s changing mood, ‘yes, Sir.’
‘Furthermore, I am concerned with the use of Shadowstone forces in an Order of Thoth engagement. Their primary purposes are surveillance and maintenance of operational security. Their involvement in this mission risks their unnecessary deaths and exposure of the secrets of the Vampire Dominion.’
Why are these men so important to you?
Crane frowned, continuing, ‘if necessary to maintain secrecy - I will not hesitate to cleanse them all. But I warn you, do not put me in the position of having to make that choice.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
‘I expect you to not waste our Shadowstone operatives in futile engagements with the Order of Thoth. Such battles are currently beyond their capabilities.’
Currently beyond, but not in the future? UK Shadowstone enhanced operatives have been sent to Jerusalem. Arthur Slayne is on an operation against Crane in Brazil. Crane’s network of distributed labs and research centers are working on secret projects with a single goal.
Chloe’s mind raced as she integrated all the evidence that she had.
He has a plan for Shadowstone Super Soldiers able to directly combat the Order of Thoth and the Red Empire during the day. How far away is he from the completion of this plan and how does he propose to control such men?
Cornelius continued, ‘I expect you to manage this engagement for victory with minimal losses.’
‘Yes, Sir.’
‘Now there is fresh food on the 105th. I suggest that you get a bite to eat and rest up in one of our studios here. You can leave with the praetorians later this evening.’
Chloe nodded, ‘will do, Sir.’
Crane clapped her on the shoulder, ‘good hunting General.’
‘Yes, Sir.’ Chloe stepped back, gave a small bow, turned and left his chambers.
Chloe smiled slyly as she walked down the corridor to the vault-like doors that were the only means to exit the floor.
Only six praetorians that leaves me under-resourced for this mission. A sharp defeat so close to home and a sudden attack by the Red Empire will drag Cornelius Crane’s attention away from the Metaframe artifacts, and give me a free hand to address matters in the North East.
General Chloe Armitage felt her new plan begin to come together as she left Crane’s quarters.
* * *
Gang strolled through the garden at the back of his home.
He inspected his roses along the back fence for the last time, they had not received much attention over the last five weeks due to the heavy training schedule with Anton and Li. He leaned over one of his favorite plants, a Rugosa rose with a set of strongly perfumed pink flowers, sniffing one of the blooms.
Beautiful, just beautiful. Who will look after you when I am gone?
Pulling back from the rose, he noticed a small object wedged against a brick on top of his back fence. It was a short cylinder that merged with the silhouette of the brick and trai
led a short lead the color of aged mortar behind it. On the front of the cylinder, he could clearly see a lens.
Shadowstone!
Gang’s heart froze, but he kept moving, sniffing a second and a third flower, murmuring approving comments as he spent another five minutes thinking furiously while strolling around the back yard. He went into the house, catching up with Anton and Li in the kitchen.
Gang tapped them both on the shoulder, before writing a quick note on a piece of paper.
It read, “Stay silent, we are compromised.”
Anton and Li, stared at Gang.
Gang wrote another note which read, “Get your gear, we leave immediately.”
Anton and Li, both left for their rooms.
Gang went out to the garage and opened a safe there. Inside was a thick wad of cash, a short barreled Glock 9mm in an ankle holster with a spare magazine, and a pair of incendiary grenades modified with ten minute timers. He pocketed the cash and strapped the Glock to his ankle. He carefully synchronized the timers on the two incendiary grenades with his wrist watch. He armed and placed the first of the grenades in the trunk of the car, right next to the fuel tank. Picking up a metal jerry can of fuel, he left the garage, taking the can into the kitchen where Anton and Li were waiting for him.
Gang put the can of fuel on top of the kitchen table; set the timer of the second incendiary grenade to a half second behind the first grenade, armed it and strapped it to the jerry can with duct tape. He checked his watch.
Six minutes and forty five seconds before all this blows.
“Wait,” Gang mouthed.
Anton and Li both shot worried looks at the timer on the grenade before nodding.
Gang went to his room, fetching the backpack he had prepared earlier that morning. Picking up the White Dragon in its traveling case, he went back to the kitchen. He reached into the backpack, pulling out an old Nokia cell phone and switched it on. As it powered up, he wrote two notes for Anton and Li, on the notes was the same message, “Split up, be indirect and meet at this address in two hours after we leave here.” The address was written beneath the message.
Gang looked at the timer on the grenade, it was now reading under three minutes, he picked up the Nokia and dialed 911. He got an operator and described a fire and gas explosion at his home address, he abruptly hung up, put the old cell phone next to the jerry can, and turned the gas on full on all the cooktop hobs in the kitchen.
Gang indicated with a sharp movement of his thumb that it was time to leave and they all went to the front door. He got there first, tapping his watch, he held them back. After another minute, he opened the front door. They could all hear the wailing of sirens in the distance. He held up his hand again, before nudging Li to the threshold, and Anton stepped in behind her.
‘Get ready,’ Gang whispered. ‘Split up and walk quickly down the street, when you hear the first explosion, Ramp and run - you will have half a second - make the most of it to get some distance.’
Li and Anton wore hoods, peaked caps and sunglasses. They had backpacks slung over their shoulders and carried their swords in long narrow travel cases.
Gang held up his hand, counting down the last five seconds with his fingers. His fist clenched for zero. Li exited the front door, followed by Anton, all three of them quickly reached the street and went in different directions.
Anytime now.
The car went off first with a loud thump which blew the garage to smithereens.
Gang ramped, quickly moving forty yards down the street.
A half a second later the kitchen exploded, smoke and debris from the house erupting into the air. The noise was deafening as bricks, burning wood and plaster flew into the street.
Within seconds, a fire engine rounded the street corner in front of him. He could see the grim faces of the firemen, the leaping fire and billowing smoke reflected in the truck’s windshield as it passed him by. Moments later the fire engine screeched to a stop out front of the remains of his home.
Gang slung his backpack over his left shoulder, pulled his hat and hood tighter over his head, held the White Dragon carry case in his right hand, and walked off down the street.
He was determined not to look back.
His feet came to a halt as if they had a mind of their own, he paused, shook his head and turned around; Li and Anton had disappeared, and the fire was spreading to the Noodle House. He watched for a long moment as smoke rose high into the summer sky.
It’s over now. It’s really gone. Tatsu, Qiang, our home is gone.
Gang turned with a heavy heart, hurrying away to make the rendezvous with Anton and Li.
Chapter Five
Section 14.4.1 False Flag Media Posts
Summary: Normalcy bias and the poisoning the well logical fallacy.
[1] This tactic is based on exploiting the cognitive normalcy bias, and the poisoning the well logical fallacy. It relies on the target population’s susceptibility for belief in the content of mainstream and authoritative belief systems, and resistance to change once a belief has been established.
[2] Secured facts that must be kept secret are published into the mass media in forms that will produce mainstream derision and rejection of their central tenets.
[3] Published secured facts should be altered in small details to enable the disassociation of belief from similar ideas and memes to ensure that whole tranches of secured discourse become mainstream taboos.
[4] There will always be a small subset of the target population who will believe the posts. The small population of believers adds to the strength of the tactic as they are able to be labeled as “fringe” and “other” in mainstream discourse. Thus reinforcing the rejection of the central tenets of the secured facts by the target population.
[5] In this way, the target population is inoculated from ever believing that the secured fact is true, and will continue to act as if the secured fact is false.
Detail: Definitions and worked examples
The details of this tactic with worked examples is described below.
[REDACTED]
- Excerpt of Section 14, Strategic Influence and Information Disruption, Shadowstone Covert PSYOPS Manual
* * *
Boston
June 11th
08:17
James twitched, spilling his coffee as the sharp bang of a nearby explosion reached his ears.
Across the street, the Wu family garage was the center of a bright glare, reflexively he began to twist away. The Wu residence exploded in a ball of flame, with smoke and debris rising high in the air. He dived away, turning like a cat, and was face down on the floor when the windows facing the street shattered, a glittering mist of razor sharp fragments filling the space where he had been standing.
Higgins was neither quick nor lucky, bearing the brunt of the flying glass as he looked up from his computer console as the windows in front of him blew into the room. Rolling out of his chair, he lay screaming on the floor as blood began to flow from numerous cuts across the top half of his body.
‘What the hell!’ James shouted, pushing himself upright and surveying the street.
The fire was already leaping across to the Noodle House, and a big red fire engine was pulling to a halt in front of the Wu residence.
‘You’ve gotta be kidding me,’ James said derisively, pointing at the fire engine. ‘How long ago were they called? This is no accident!’
Higgins was still screaming when Louise Wesson and Johnson ran into the room.
Rushing toward Higgins, Louise shouted, ‘don’t pull it out.’
The warning came too late as Higgins dragged an inch-wide shard of glass from the side of his neck. The glass had missed his trachea but had caught his carotid artery. The wound began to spray blood. His eyes went wide with terror as he clutched his throat and blood sluiced around his fingers.
Johnson grabbed a towel from a bench, pushing it hard against the wound as Higgins lay back down on the floor.
&nb
sp; James looked at the array of consoles in front of him, half were registering static, the rest were showing fire, smoke and the arrival of a second fire engine. The one useful display was the main screen showing the Panopticon reference maps, it showed a cluster of green contacts at the front gate of the Wu residence and along the street in both directions.
They split up. So where and when are they going to meet again?
James watched the contacts change from green to yellow flags as they became stale. The most recent Panopticon contact on any of his targets was now older than a minute.
James growled, ‘damn this smoke and fire! We’ve just lost contact. Damn it, our targets have escaped.’
‘Looks like Higgins is gone,’ Louise said.
James looked down, Higgins was no longer moving. The towel held by Johnson on Higgins’ throat was saturated with blood, and there was a red pool around his shoulders and head.
Johnson sighed and stood up, his lips pressed tightly together. He turned, holding his bloodied hands away from his clothes and retreated to the bathroom.
‘Wesson, get him cleaned up and ready for action,’ James ordered.
‘Yes, Sir.’
James flipped open his laptop. It was still operational; it was the machine providing the Panopticon feed on the surviving main screen. He initiated a fresh top priority search focused on the Boston region, every available camera would now be scanned for Li and Gang Wu, and Anton Smith.
Slayne is so well hidden, even the Panopticon doesn’t know his real name. How did they do that?
A minute later, Louise and Johnson returned from the bathroom, he now wore a fresh shirt and his hands were clean.
‘What now boss?’ Johnson growled.
‘Okay, the three of us will have to re-establish contact with the targets ASAP,’ James said. ‘Johnson, clear this equipment back to the van and clean all our tech from this site, including the feeds on the back fence of the Wu residence. Wesson, call in your team. Get the whole of Green-4 to Boston now.’
A Subtle Agency Page 17