“So you admit to being a sick fuck?!”
“Of course! I love it! At least I own it. All I hear about you is how much of a saint you are. Fucking prick. I hate your fucking guts.”
“Hate me? You don’t even know me! What have I ever done to you?!”
“You got everything, and I got nothing. Family, friends, you are in this fancy ass shithole that makes you feel like you are special. Everybody looks at you like we aren’t exactly the same, like you are better than me. I didn’t even know about you until recently. How you laid low so long I have no fucking clue, but when I found out about you, I knew I had to see this shit with my own eyes.”
“How can you have a vendetta against me when nothing I did affected you? I don’t even know you!”
The man smirks, “Oh you will. Time for me to go. Enjoy the mess little brother.”
Anaar moves to try to ask more questions, particularly what he meant by his last words, but the ground beneath him erupts, sending him flying through the air. Though he was not disoriented for long after hitting the ground, it did take him a few moments to regain his bearings. When he stood up, he found himself covered in dirt, soot and snow, his clothes in tatters. For the first time he truly took in the scene around him, realizing how dire a state the city was in.
He had not been a frequenter of Haxby, his minimalistic nature leading him to have all his needs easily met by the facilities on campus, but Maggie had insisted he come with her a few times, and once Phavian had taken him on a date in the city. To see the state it was currently in was something of nightmares. He had lost control before, causing widespread damage, but it was always consistent, accidental. Looking around him, there was no doubt in his mind it was intentional.
The first thing on his mind was to help those in the immediate vicinity who might be trapped and doomed otherwise. He was walking out of a burning storefront holding the only survivor inside, a woman, badly burned and unconscious from smoke inhalation. Just as he was examining her injuries to prepare healing her, he was converged upon by a number of policemen, all pointing guns at him.
“Step away from the woman!”
“This woman is dying! She needs immediate medical attention!”
“I won’t ask you again! Step away from the woman or we will be forced to shoot!”
Anaar had made it his business to stay far away from the police, but he knew enough to do as they said, despite the dying woman in front of him. The best he could do for her was give her a small burst of healing, just to make sure she did not die before the paramedics could get to her. With his hands clearly visible and raised, he slowly stepped backward from the ailing woman.
“Anaar Vorpahl you are under arrest! Any attempt to resist will be met with deadly force. Is that clear?!”
Doing his best to remain calm, making as few motions as possible, “Yes.”
Two men approached him cautiously while another four still had their guns trained on him. Once his hands were cuffed behind his back, the men with the guns very visibly relaxed, even if only slightly. Being extremely compliant with everything they asked of him he stepped in the armored vehicle as he was chained to the seat.
The whole time he was being transported, his mind was racing, millions of questions only giving way to more questions. He was completely confused and unsure of what to do about his situation. In his barrage of thoughts, he could not help but wonder if the policemen knew how a Demolitionist worked. He had complied with everything, obviously because he had done nothing wrong, but was there so little experience and training for these type of situations that they thought handcuffs would make any difference? He decided it was most likely a formality, but it was still absurd how ill-equipped policemen were to deal with threats like himself. He made a note in the back of his mind to see what he could do about their readiness for such a situation.
When he had arrived at the police station, he took inventory of his situation and immediately contacted Ixnes. He had not been standing waiting for processing more than five minutes before she strode into the station in all her glory, her presence inspiring awe and fear even in the wake of the catastrophe around the city. Her dazzling fur coat was out of place in the police station, but would have allowed her to blend right in if she were about a stroll around the city.
“What is the meaning of this?”
Even without exerting any pressure, very few people knew how to conduct themselves in the midst of Ixnes Sastre. “Ms. Sastre! What a pleasure to have you here!”
When she gave the man standing vigil over Anaar a withering look, another officer who seemed more experienced entered the fray. “Headmistress Sastre, with respect to your position and title, you do not have any grounds to be privy to that information.”
After a moment of discerning, she speaks to the man clearly, with authority but without condescension. “Yes, I remember you. It is good to see you have moved up so quickly in the ranks here. I shall ask again, what is this boy charged with?”
“Simply being the headmistress of Sophangence does not afford you the right to any of that information, especially in a terrorist situation.”
“Terrorist situation?! My word, what could possibly give you the idea this child had anything to do with this?”
“Once again with respect to your-”
“Yes, yes, you have mentioned this before. He is of legal age so I have no rights to claim guardianship over him, however he is entitled to an attorney. I am representing this boy.”
“We would need some documentation-”
Without asking James, who had been standing behind her the whole time, but as she was apt to do, completely dwarfed his presence, seemed to transfer something to the man.
“As you will see there, I am licensed to practice criminal law in every state and 70 countries. Now, if we could dispense with this bruhaha I would greatly appreciate if you would remove the handcuffs from my client and take us somewhere we may sort through this.”
“With all due respect, for the safety of everyone here-”
“If you are worried about your safety, I can guarantee you these silly handcuffs would do nothing to protect you if he were responsible for what you say.”
The man gulps and reluctantly has another officer remove the handcuffs. Once free of them, Anaar and Ixnes were escorted to a small room to discuss the charges against Anaar. As the man began listing the charges, Ixnes stopped him after the sixth charge.
“You and I both know this is far outside the scope of capability for a local police station. Acts of terror would be handled by the FBI and Homeland Security. I can understand you would like to detain my client until the time those organizations could arrive, but I still have no understanding how my client was implicated in the first place.”
“We received an anonymous tip as to his whereabouts and his… capabilities. Footage obtained from the beginning of the attacks place him at the scene during the attacks.”
“I would like to review this footage. Also, how would this anonymous tipster know exactly who and where he was to be apprehended? What was my client doing when you took him into custody? Was he caught in the act?”
“He was directly in front of one of the affected structures.”
“I ask again, what was he doing, and was he caught in the act.”
The man was clearly uncomfortable, beginning to sweat as he gulped audibly. “He was found kneeling over an unconscious woman.”
“From the look of his clothes, could he perhaps been rescuing that woman and seeking aid for her?”
“He did mention the woman was injured but-”
“My client has the best scores in the medical curriculum in our institution. While this in no way qualifies him to practice medicine, it does give additional context to my client’s attempt to stabilize the injured party while the appropriate faculties arrived.”
“This is possible-”
“Could it also be possible that the actions of my client instead of taking the injured party’s
life, saved it?”
“We do not have any information regarding that.”
“Of course. Answer me this then. Why would a person, a terrorist, cause unbidden damage for over an hour, only to be found in the location designated by an anonymous source, as he attempted to rescue a victim of this horrific tragedy?”
“Given his abilities and the profile…”
“The profile obtained from the footage we still have yet to see?”
“Please, ma’am…”
“I do not wish to embarrass you sir, but if we are to summarize what we have here thus far, is a horrendous act occurred, you received an anonymous tip which brings you directly to my client who looks much more the victim than the perpetrator, and he was apprehended whilst saving a life. Does that sound somewhat accurate?”
“Well we-”
“There has yet to be any footage produced to corroborate your claim he was responsible for these acts. I however have footage showing him on my campus as the attacks were happening. A number of my students rushed from the campus to help with relief and evacuation efforts. We have offered safety to many residents within out walls already. Will these students who assisted in doing your job also be harassed?”
The man found himself thoroughly trounced, unable to offer up a response. After pursing her lips and waiting a few more moments, Ixnes stood from the table, pulling her coat around her.
“Detective Reynolds it appears there are absolutely no grounds to hold my client, let along charge him. There is no evidence that implicates him other than a suspiciously accurate tip, anonymous tip, that brought you directly to him as he was saving a life. With that we will be taking our leave. If the FBI or Homeland wish to discuss this matter further with any credible evidence, they most definitely have my information. Until, I will be taking my client back to campus and continuing relief efforts.”
She turns to leave, the defeated man not even able to raise his head. As she is preparing to exit the room, she stops to look back at him. “I promise we will assist in every way to find who did this. Until then, our doors are open, and resources are available.”
Exiting the room with Anaar, she navigates effortlessly back to the front of the station where James is waiting. From the surprised look on many of the officers’ faces they could not believe their only suspect was walking out the door in less than an hour of apprehending him. Once outside, Ixnes gives a motion to James, signaling him to open a wormhole. Before entering, she looks up into Anaar’s face giving him a pitying look as she wipes a smudge of soot from it.
“Come now child. As usual, you have much explaining to do.”
24
Between his trainings with Ixnes and Seles, Anaar had come to spend so much time at Ixnes’ home he officially had his own dedicated room. Though he most often trained in just his suit when with Ixnes, he wore normal clothes with Seles. As a result, he had damaged enough outfits that Ixnes had also stocked his room with a closet full of clothes, no doubt at Hobb’s behest. After showering and changing, he made his way to one of Ixnes’ studies to talk to her about what had occurred. He had barely shut the door before she began speaking.
“Could you please tell me why you felt it was a good idea to run headlong into a city under terrorist attack? Did it not occur to you the first person they might seek to place blame would be the known Demolitionist?”
Slumping down into a chair heavily, “Well they got part of it right.”
“Explain yourself.”
“I went because the reports of the damage painted it as too controlled. Buildings directly adjacent to one another would have one unharmed with the other reduced to rubble and burning.”
“This is unlike you. That would not be enough to force your hand into something so reckless. You are not telling me something. It is much more likely you are not telling me many things. Indubitably I will be harangued by high ranking members of the agencies meant to protect us. They have already been on high alert regarding your activities since Cuba. I need to have a clear idea what is approaching if I am to protect you child.”
“The footage reminded me of what happened to Phavian. Of the few witnesses we had, Phavian included, they all agreed the person who did this was me. It was much too deliberate to be a coincidence. I had to see if I could find this person for myself. I had to know how and better yet why they were trying to frame me.”
“Please tell me something came of this uncharacteristically illogical pursuit of yours.”
Anaar sat frozen, still not sure if he could believe the most recent events himself. His state lasted so long it caused Ixnes to clear her throat with impatience. As hard as it was to believe, Anaar found it even more difficult to say. After wetting his lips, he finally formulated the words that had been nothing but thoughts in his mind.
“I think I have a brother. A twin to be exact.”
This caused Ixnes to sit forward in her chair with a start, her own thoughts less muddled by the emotion Anaar had been struggling with. “How can you be so sure?”
“You mean besides the mirror image of myself?”
“The troubled child, Mercurial, you are well acquainted with them. How could you be so certain when you have frequent contact with someone who can take on your form?”
“It’s one thing to take on my form, it’s another thing entirely…”
“Speak child.”
“You saw how I looked. He did that to me.”
“It could have all been a clever trick, planned long in advance.”
“That was no trick, and the people and buildings lost couldn’t tell a difference. There is also the fact… He called me ‘little brother.’”
“More things to antagonize you. I looked into you thoroughly during your application. Your mother is listed on your birth certificate.”
“You think I don’t know that?! You keep bringing up refutations as if I had not already considered them! What if my life has been a lie? How does he even know he is the elder of us?”
“Why would your mother hide the existence of a twin brother?”
“I don’t know, but I intend to find out. If I am to figure this out, I need to start questioning my past and every aspect of my life.”
“This all seems rather farfetched child.”
“I felt him Ixnes. I have heard of twins having a connection, and there is without a doubt a connection between us that is strong and runs deep, despite our completely separate lives.”
“Why now of all times?”
“He says he hates me for having what he never did. I have no clue what that even means.”
“Please do consider rational action before execution. You now have a very large target on your back.”
“I don’t care. I have to find him. I need to know. Even if it is some elaborate hoax, the fact remains there is someone out there who is extremely dangerous. I can’t let him go running free, especially not with my face.”
“Where do you propose you will even begin child?! Do you even know his name?!”
“Yefferson.”
“That may just as well be an alias.”
“Maybe, but I don’t think it is. He wanted my attention. He wanted me to know he existed. He told me he attacked Phavian on purpose to antagonize me.”
“Do you really think the FBI will allow you to roam freely? I may have defended you for now, but this matter is quite severe!”
“I don’t care. I can’t help but think he is only getting started. What he did to Haxby was like a cat playing with a mouse. I could see it in his eyes. He is a much bigger threat than you realize.”
“Then let the authorities take care of him child!”
“He’s my twin. What authorities can handle him?! It has to be me. I’m leaving to search for answers.”
“You have no leads child! Even if you did, the Mid-Year Melee is fast approaching. I cannot have you missing such an event. No one is allowed to miss it. There are many traditions I have decided to allow to fade, but that is one I will not
.”
“You will just have to deal with it. There are still a few months. Do you have so little faith in my ability to find him in that time?”
“Capable as you may be, there is nothing for you to investigate! This could be months, years in the making!”
“If it is, so be it. Now that I know about him though, it just means I need to keep my ear to the ground for anything resembling his trail of destruction.”
“Take James with you. He will no doubt be invaluable. The faster you are able to travel, the greater your chances of catching up with this unknown vagrant.”
“I can’t take James. It is far too dangerous for him and I cannot guarantee his safety. Plus he is needed here. That is your assistant, but it is not your place to send him to his death.”
“Do not be absurd child! I will not allow you to leave the premises without a proper way to travel and someone to watch over you!”
“I am more than capable of handling my own travel without endangering someone else. Plus I have Hobb to look out for me.”
“I know you are fearful for his safety, and I know he would appreciate your concern, however it seems you believe James to care for you only because I ask. This is not the case.”
“The less people who know my secret, the better. We agreed on that did we not?”
“Of course, but surely-”
“But surely you don’t think I can fight while worrying about James and with a handicap? He is my twin, but he is stronger than both you and me. Not only that, he is like my opposite, something that makes no sense if we are actually identical.”
“What do you mean he is stronger than the both of us? Your opposite? How can you know that?”
“The same way I know that your exact echelon is 6.28, making you weaker than me.”
Ixnes looks at Anaar with shock, words escaping her for a moment until she realizes what is happening. “It seems Hobb has been liberal with my information. I will look past this only because it is you, but Hobb know that I am not pleased.”
Hobb appears as a projection nearby, impeccably dressed as always, but his expression shows no remorse in his actions. “Mother I can assure you I have in no way divulged any of your personal information to Anaar, despite our connection. He has also never requested this of me. As you know he values privacy above all else.”
Apotheosis (Song of Sophangence Book 3) Page 30