by Lucas Flint
“What happened when you were thirteen?” said Bolt.
“Mann killed my father,” said Eli. He looked down at the table. “Murdered him in cold blood before my eyes.”
“What?” said White in shock. “Why would he do that?”
Eli leaned back in his chair. He now looked much older than he actually was, as if he had just aged two decades in two minutes. “One thing you need to understand about my grandfather is that he is a collector. He has a huge collection of various rare and unusual artifacts from all around the world underneath his mansion in upstate New York. He would sometimes show me some of the things he owned and a lot of it was really interesting, especially for a young boy, but there was always one room he never allowed me to look into, a room separate from the rest of the collection.”
“What was in that room?” asked Mecha Knight. “Stolen goods? Gold, silver, or some kind of rare jewels?”
Eli laughed. “My grandfather wasn’t that kind of collector. He never cared much for gold, silver, or jewelry, because he was already obscenely wealthy. He was more interested in the true history of the world, in the objects that were said to have existed even before human civilization. He was always fascinated by that stuff, though he rarely spoke with me about it. I think it is because my father—his son, that is—didn’t like him filling my head with ideas about pre-human civilizations and the like, because my father never took any of it very seriously.”
“Pre-human civilization?” Bolt repeated. “You don’t mean, like, ancient aliens and stuff, right? That isn’t real.”
“Bolt, you and I both know that that is bull,” said Eli. “You and I both know that the Starborn came to Earth once before, eons before humanity even invented the concept of writing. And they left behind objects and artifacts, which have managed to survive to this day thanks to their unique properties, though a few have been protected by obscure cults which worship the Starborn in secret, passing down the artifacts from father to son for countless generations.”
“The Apocalypse Switch,” said Mecha Knight. “That was one of the artifacts that the Starborn left behind, yes?”
“Yes, but it wasn’t the only one by any means,” said Eli. “In fact, my great-grandfather was a high priest in one of those nameless cults I just mentioned. He handed down one such Starborn object—which we know as the Call—down to my grandfather, which was what started Mann’s obsession with the Starborn that has consumed nearly his entire life.”
“The Call,” White repeated. “Sounds familiar. Where heard it before?”
“Likely your friends, Blizzard and Shell, told you about it,” said Eli. “They saw it. Or, at least, Shell did, though he really only saw it while it was inside its box. I never told him what its true nature is, though, or what it can do. He didn’t need to know.”
“I see,” said Mecha Knight. “Are you going to tell us, then, what the Call does?”
“I would rather not, but given the current circumstances, I have no choice,” said Eli with another sigh. He pulled a small box out of his pocket and rested it on the table, which he then opened and pulled out a small device, which White leaned toward to look at better.
The device in Eli’s hands was ancient, almost indescribably so. It closely resembled a modern smartphone, but at the same time, it did not have a touch screen; instead, it had a bunch of strange buttons and switches. A few of the buttons and switches were missing, perhaps having been lost to the ages, but the device was in surprisingly good condition despite its obvious age, like it had been carefully preserved by someone for a long time. White was tempted to take it out of Eli’s hands and look at it, but knowing that it would be socially unacceptable to do so, he kept his hands to himself.
“Doesn’t look like much to me,” said Bolt.
“Don’t let its appearance fool you,” said Eli. “The Call is powerful, perhaps the most powerful Starborn artifact that we know of. I’d say it is second only to the Apocalypse Switch in terms of its power, if not even stronger. In the wrong hands, it can destroy an entire city.”
“A whole city, huh?” said Bolt. “That is powerful.”
“Yes,” said Eli. “As for what it does exactly, that’s simple: If you press this red button, it will summon the Starborn to wherever you are on Earth.”
Eli gestured at a small red button in the center, which White had failed to notice when Eli had showed the Call to them.
“Interesting,” said Mecha Knight. “And how do you know it can do that?”
“Because that is what the cults I have met with have told me,” said Eli. “I haven’t tested it myself, but that’s because I don’t want to summon the Starborn to Earth and have them kill everyone. Indeed, that’s why I stole it from the government in the first place.”
“Wait, didn’t you say that the Call was passed down from father to son in your family?” said Bolt. “How could you have stolen it from the government if it was passed down to you?”
Eli smiled. “When did I say that it was ever passed down to me? This is why my father was killed by my grandfather. He gave the Call to the government, because he did not trust such a dangerous object with my grandfather.”
“You said that your grandfather murdered your father,” said Mecha Knight. “Can you elaborate on that point?”
“Yes,” said Eli, nodding. “My father, Michael Mann, never shared my grandfather’s obsession with the Starborn. He thought that my grandfather’s obsession with the Starborn was having a negative effect on his sanity; indeed, that’s probably why my grandmother left my grandfather, because he became so obsessed with the Starborn that he started to neglect her. In any case, my father learned something about my grandfather’s real reason for being obsessed with the Starborn, so he stole the Call from him and gave it to the government for safekeeping.”
“Why did he trust the government more than his own father?” said Bolt. “I know the government and I would never trust them with something as important as the Call.”
“My father didn’t know about the government’s corruption,” said Eli with a shrug. “In any case, when my grandfather found out, he was absolutely furious. He came to our house one night and got into an argument with my father about it. My father ordered me to leave the room and go to bed, but I actually hid just outside in the hall and peeked through a crack in the door. That was when I saw my grandfather pull out a knife and stab my father to death.”
White gulped. “Not good.”
“That’s putting it mildly,” said Eli dryly. “My grandfather thought he did it with no witnesses, but I screamed when I saw him kill dad and he forced me not to tell anyone what I saw. When the police came over, my grandfather had already concocted an elaborate story about how his poor son had lost his mind and tried to kill him and me, forcing my grandfather to tragically murder his own son in order to save the life of an innocent thirteen-year-old boy. There was an investigation, but my grandfather was cleared of any responsibility for my father’s death, though I can tell you that that is because my grandfather paid off the police, the judge, the jury, and everyone else involved in the investigation. Justice was not actually carried out that day.”
“Why didn’t you tell anyone?” said Bolt. “Surely you could have put a stop to this by telling everyone what really happened, right?”
“I was a scared thirteen-year-old boy, Bolt,” said Eli, rolling his shoulders like they were getting too stiff. “No one would have believed me, anyway, because they would have assumed it was just the trauma talking. And I was scared that my grandfather might murder me, too, if I tried to tell anyone, so I kept it a secret even when the courts granted my grandfather custody of me. My mother tried to get custody of me, but she mysteriously ended up dying in a car wreck on the day she was supposed to appear in court and no other relatives came forward to claim me, so I ended up living with my grandfather until I graduated high school.”
“Was your mother a superhuman, per chance?” said Mecha Knight. “Or was your father the
superhuman?”
“It was my mother,” said Eli. “There aren’t any superhumans in the Mann family line, to the best of my knowledge. I think that always bothered my grandfather, though, because he had always wanted a superhuman in the family, yet there were no neogenes to pass down. That is probably why he always treated me better than his actual son, because I actually have a power, whereas my father didn’t.”
“What’s your power, by the way?” said Bolt. “You haven’t told us.”
“I can make the powers of other superhumans stronger,” said Eli. “I can also unlock hidden or undeveloped powers inside others, but the boost lasts for only a limited time, anywhere from a few days to a week.”
“Interesting power,” said Mecha Knight. “And a very powerful one, at that.”
“Yes,” said Eli. “My grandfather was ecstatic when my powers first developed. He was worried that they might not develop at all, but when I first showed him my powers, he was so proud of me. Not that he started treating me well, you understand. He was just happy that I had powers because it helped his own plans.”
“What are his plans?” said Bolt. “Aside from trying to stop the Starborn, that is.”
“And that is the problem,” said Eli. “You see, my grandfather was just as interested in the occult as me. He began messing with the secrets of the Starborn, which was eventually how he discovered that the Starborn were coming back to Earth. He had a dream—part of a connection with the Starborn he had had for most of his life thanks to his experiments with the Starborn artifacts—in which he mentally spoke with the Starborn, who told him that they were coming to Earth to destroy humanity due to the rise of superhumans. That knowledge led him to try to destroy all superhumans on Earth, but that isn’t the end of his plans.”
“What do you mean?” said Bolt. “What is his true final goal?”
Eli lay the Call down on the table before him, a troubled look on his face. “My grandfather will tell you that he just wants to save humanity, but the truth is, he wants to rule over it. He plans to use the Starborn artifacts, such as the Call, to control the Starborn and use them to subjugate the rest of humanity under his rule. That is why he is so interested in Starborn artifacts and why he wants to destroy all superhumans, because if he can get rid of us, then it will be much harder to fight against his rule.”
“How can Mann control the Starborn?” said Bolt in shock. “I don’t know much about the Starborn, true, but everything I’ve heard indicates that they aren’t exactly as easy to boss around as dogs, for example.”
“I don’t know for sure, seeing as he never told me, but I can guess that he is going to use a combination of Starborn artifacts and bioengineering,” said Eli. “That’s what the Genesis Institute was for. My grandfather has been attempting to design servants and creatures that will form the backbone of his army. He also, I think, was using the Genesis Institute to study superhumans and how our genetics work in order to learn how to control us.”
“Do the Venetians know this?” said Mecha Knight. “Because it does not seem likely to me that the Venetians, who are all superhumans, would support John Mann’s plans to destroy all superhumans in order to secure his rule over the planet.”
“I don’t know,” said Eli. “I suspect that my grandfather has promised fabulous power and wealth to them. Most of the Venetians are not very smart; they follow Mann because my grandfather is very good at selling his ideas to people, not because his ideas make sense.”
“They think they’re the good guys,” said Bolt. “They genuinely believe that they’re helping Mann save the world. That much I know. I wonder if they’d be so eager to help him ‘save’ the world if they knew what he was really trying to do, though.”
“It’s irrelevant at this point,” said Eli. “The point is that the Venetians are my grandfather’s main practical force in the world. They are not his only servants, but they’re the ones most directly related to his plans. If we’re going to go after Mann, then we will need to be aware of the Venetians as well.”
“Of course,” said Bolt. “But, Eli, I don’t understand something. Triplet told us that Mann’s grandson faked his death. Does that mean you faked your own death?”
Eli nodded. “Yes. My grandfather did not want me to leave him, even when I became an adult. He always kept an eye on me, because, like I said, he thought my powers would be useful for his plans. But I had been desiring to get away from him for years by that point, but I knew that there was no way I could ever get away from his watchful eye unless I died. So, with the help of some friends, I faked my death, which never actually fooled my grandfather, but it did get me off his radar for a while, which made it easier to relax.”
“What about the Unwanted?” said Bolt. “What role do they play in all of this?”
Eli rubbed the back of his neck. “I genuinely do want to help unwanted superhumans, but in truth, I was actually trying to form a community and an organization which could stand against my grandfather’s plans. I figured that once I had a large enough group, I could stop my grandfather before he succeeded. I don’t think it will be working out that way, though, given recent events.”
White looked at Chip. Chip had not uttered a word since the start of the meeting, but he didn’t look surprised at anything Eli said. He must have already known all about Eli’s past, which explained why he did not appear to be even remotely shocked by the revelations Eli made here.
“Why did you not let the NHA or INJ know about this?” said Mecha Knight, leaning forward in his seat. “We would have been happy to help you stop Mann.”
“Because I didn’t have any proof,” Eli replied. “I didn’t think anyone would listen to me if all I had was accusations. Plus, I saw it as my own problem, a family issue if you will. I thought I could handle it on my own, though now I realize what a fool I’ve been. It would have been better if I had approached you about it much earlier. Maybe we could have stopped my grandfather sooner.”
“We understand,” said Mecha Knight. “Yet your behavior in Phoenix does not fit with what you told us here. Shell informed me that you attempted to sell the Call to your grandfather for one million dollars, as well as an explanation of who the Starborn are. If it is too dangerous for Mann to have the Call, why would you attempt to sell it to him for any reason?”
“I didn’t actually intend to sell it,” Eli admitted. “I just pretended in order to get more information on the Starborn. It was the only way I knew of that would allow me to speak to one of my grandfather’s servants. That obviously did not work out the way I planned.” He sighed. “That about sums up my life, now that I think about it.”
“I’d say,” said Bolt. He put his hands on the table and leaned toward Eli. “Is that all? Or do you have any more information for us?”
“That’s it,” said Eli with a shrug. “With Zanni dead and most of the Venetians wounded, I am probably safe for the moment, but my grandfather isn’t the kind to give up very easily. He’ll probably send his Venetians after me as soon as they’re healed up.”
“All right,” said Bolt. He sat upright and punched his right hand into his left. “Now that we know what Mann is trying to do, we need to stop him once and for all. Let’s go to his mansion and kick his ass before he does anything else.”
“Hold on, Bolt,” said Mecha Knight, holding up a hand. “I wouldn’t be so eager to go after him if I were you. Attacking Mann now, when we don’t even have any proof of what Eli says—”
“I’m not lying,” said Eli quickly. “Everything I said was the truth.”
“—could potentially backfire on us,” Mecha Knight finished. “I believe Eli, but we already know that Mann has most of the media on his side. He could easily spin any attack from us into bad publicity for the NHA and the Young Neos.”
“But if Mann is planning to take over the world, don’t we have a duty to stop him?” said Bolt. “He’s no different than any other supervillain, in my opinion.”
“Bolt is right,” said
White, nodding. “Need to stop Mann before he does anything.”
“I understand your desire to stop him, but rushing out to defeat him now would be foolish,” Mecha Knight pointed out. “Shell, Blizzard, and Treehugger still haven’t even returned from their mission yet. And with Stinger and Talon both still recovering from the battle at the warehouse, that leaves you two as the only active members of the Young Neos, but even both of you are not in top shape.”
White had to admit that Mecha Knight had a point, but he said, “But we still need to stop him.”
“We also need a plan,” Mecha Knight pointed out. “So far, I have not heard any ideas from either of you about how we will stop Mann.”
“I have a plan,” said Eli, causing everyone to look at him. “A way for us to get into my grandfather’s mansion and stop him once and for all. But you will need to listen to me in order to do it.”
“Will it be dangerous?” asked Mecha Knight.
“Possibly, if it doesn’t go right,” said Eli. “But it’s also our only chance at stopping my grandfather once and for all. Listen closely, because we may not have a lot of time left before my grandfather’s plan succeeds.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Stinger woke up with a start. His heart beating fast, Stinger at first thought that he was still back on top of the warehouse when it exploded. The sensation of being blasted from underneath and sent flying through the air … his wings being burnt to a crisp … hurtling toward the concrete ground below like a stone … all of those memories and more played before his eyes in an instant until he realized that he was actually sitting in what seemed to be a hospital room bed.