They had to go back to the clinic to continue additional treatment, which included aggressive chemotherapy and smaller injections of this formula called Tri-X. The doctor said it contained organic ingredients, which would help slow down the spread of the disease and begin cleansing the blood.
Over the next three weeks, Aristotle’s health would reach new highs and then crash and burn. Every time he had one of those small injections, which was weekly, it was like his body was reborn.
For 48 hours after the injection, he was like a 30-year old Aristotle. His appetite was robust, he could lift heavy boxes of over 200 lbs. at his hardware store, and even jog during the mornings for seven miles.
After that, the sickness came back with a vengeance. If this was even possible, he was even sicker than before. He couldn’t keep food in him and continued coughing up blood. He couldn’t walk and was barely able to lift his head or arms. His skin turned grey. Aristotle also started hallucinating. He would see his parents who died 15 and 20 years ago.
When bringing water to his father’s bedside during another frightening episode, Frankie began wiping his father's brow. Aristotle was shivering in his bed. Teeth were chattering. He grabbed his son’s arm.
“Son! Please give me the shot!”
Frank held onto his father’s arm. “Pop, you’ll get it Thursday remember?”
“No! Now!”
Frankie saw the desperation in his father's eyes. This former athlete and strong man was helpless. Aristotle cried.
“Son! Please! Please! I need you...Oh God!"
Aristotle looked up at the ceiling and clenched his teeth. He was writhing in pain. Gabriella rushed in after hearing her husband’s plea.
“It’s okay mijo,” she told Frankie while wiping Aristotle’s brow. “Go do your studies.”
Frankie left their side. He stormed into his room and lost it. He took his school books off his desk and threw them against the wall.
Tears streaming, he looked for something else to throw. He saw the two books on his desk against the corner of the wall. They were stacked on top of one another. The top book had a cup on it. Frankie picked up the cup and placed it to the side. He then picked the books up.
He slowly sat down in his chair. He has been so busy with his dad. He forgot about everything else that happened in his science class the day he received the books. Mr. Joseph was on a month’s leave, so he didn’t get to remind Frankie about their discussion.
An exhausted Frankie opened the first book called Life Blood. It began explaining the functions of blood--what it did and had the capacity to do. Dr. Amahl believed the blood had undiscovered properties that added to its cleansing and healing functions.
For the next three months, Frankie would study these books. The second book shared Amahl’s research of plants and theories of new plant species said to have miraculous healing powers. Then he remembered “La Milagra”.
From that day on, Frankie would dedicate his youth and adult life to researching blood illnesses and run vast expeditions and experiments to find cures or better treatments. He would also make trouble for some medical and drug industries, which included busting them on price gouging.
In his 20’s through 40’s, Frank would traffic in organic ingredients with amazing healing properties to low income communities who needed treatment. Some of his partners were the smaller clinics and small town doctors who badly wanted to help their patients. They loved Frank! They could trust him and he delivered.
Frank graduated from NYU with his PhD in bimolecular science and taught at NYU until his 47th birthday. He received an email from Dr. Amahl himself who invited him to take his spot as the new biochemistry professor.
The following semester, Dr. Francisco Magellan landed in Aberdeen, Scotland. His contrary and critical nature to the department’s curriculum ruffled feathers including those of chemistry professor Dr. Colin Carrington--mentioned previously as the brother of archaeologist professor Geoffrey Carrington. The straight-laced Colin Carrington was fine with innovative and groundbreaking research, like his brother, but this upstart and arrogant newbie Magellan was overstepping his place.
Colin was overheard saying to Geoff that this was Francisco’s time to keep his head down, learn the ropes, and shut his mouth! This comment got back to Francisco. He and the Carrington brothers, from then on, were unfriendly rivals. They did, however, had to respect each other’s work.
Geoffrey Carrington, although not in the science department, was an expert in ancient and extinct plant life. Francisco was a bit jealous of that, but hid his envy behind his cool response to the world renowned archaeologist. He scoffed at Carrington’s Indiana Jones-like background exploring the Amazon rainforests, the Sahara, and Ethiopia’s holy places for lost artifacts including discovering new plant life.
Magellan wasn’t too shabby in the adventure category. His history was just as impressive. He was a revolutionary and globetrotter who’s known to clash with the gatekeepers of world power brokers, fighting major drug corporations, and discovering breakthrough treatments for diseases.
That lifestyle also put a big target on his back.
The experiment Francisco ran with his mentor Dr. Amahl would unleash a massive danger on him and his 29-year old assistant—archaeology graduate student Morgan Bannister.
Dr. Francisco Magellan and Morgan Bannister formed a dangerous partnership.
He found the perfect answer in Morgan for who was going to be his “partner in crime”.
Their expertise in alternative medicine and ancient plant life, ancient text revealing hidden plant life, and thirst for taking down hostile groups made them a huge target. Their disruptive practices forced them to go on the run for over a year.
More adventures and secret missions, including Amahl’s work, will be revealed in their chronicles for an upcoming book.
Chapter 9
Avalon and Silas checked into a local hotel ten miles from The Rocky Moutains. After a quiet dinner in Avalon’s room, the two opened up a new document from Benjamin Ezra. This one slid under the door in a thin leather folder during dessert.
The purple label-stamped document was a continuation from the story of the Barrett family. The two students began to read.
Dr. Ezra Speaks-
By now, Morgan has given you the next phase of your assignment. Follow them exactly! The terrorists will come at you with everything they got. Stay razor sharp; and watch each others’ back. The Damascus Code is a key to controlling countries and kingdoms. You are not a real threat to a deadly global terrorist network.”
Avalon and Silas would set off to Morgan’s base the next day.
The Rockies
The Rocky Mountains were magical! One of God’s great creations was stretched over multiple states, but Morgan's base was on the Colorado side. These breathtaking mountains were filled with folklore and adventure. Snow-capped peaks, blankets of pine trees, and rivers and valleys surrounded each visitor with spectacular beauty and even danger. The streams and rivers could lull you to sleep or catapult you into a whitewater rafting roller coaster.
Morgan used to visit this neck of the woods during her undergraduate study in Washington, DC. She came back year after year--more enchanted than before.
MSC Base Lab Compound - Rockies
When Morgan was granted the opportunity for her own secret defense and research lab and base, she could not think of a better place than the Rockies. The base was named MSC to mean the Morgan Security Compound. The MSC Base had a one-story cabin, which was surrounded by a creek and majestic mountains that framed a vast green valley.
There were no residents for miles from this secluded and protected dwelling. In fact, Morgan had to drive 30 minutes to reach the next town and shops. Nearby wildlife were also protected and cared for by a wildlife preservation team who Morgan hired.
She made long time friends and formed a warm bond with the locals. Although she could not reveal much about her history or personal life, she was still a very
outgoing resident. The local families and shop owners enjoyed her company and often invited her to dinner. She was also well liked by college students who met her as a guest instructor at Colorado State University.
Her payment to the locals for their hospitality included guest teaching at the local schools and colleges, recruiting students for her non-classified research projects, and persuading her influential contacts to donate resources and money to local schools and tech training.
Before she had the base built, she approached a pre-selected group of residents about this ambitious construction plan. The majority of these individuals served in intelligence and national security. They were referred to her by her contacts from Scotland Yard, the CIA, and Department of Defense.
The deal was that 25% of the weapons she created, that scored on the MSC reliability scale of 85% or above,--a scale measuring effectiveness--would be available for free to national security and defense for both the USA and United Kingdom.
The rest was history.
The Lab
After enduring a bumpy ride in Hannibal’s 4x4 truck and a five-mile hike, Avalon and Silas reached the cabin’s front yard. The cabin greeted the three hikers with five creaky stairs up to the front porch. Two rocking chairs begged them to take a load off, but there was no time to rest right now.
Hannibal was wide awake and joked with the two travelers during their trek. As Magellan’s security guard, he often cheered up the stressed scientist, especially if Morgan wasn’t there.
Hannibal missed Morgan too; she was like the little sister he never had. She was the only one who could put Francisco--who Hannibal and Morgan called Franco--at ease in the worst of times. There were too many of those times to even count.
The Avalon, Silas, and Hannibal entered through the cabin’s screen door. Looking up at the 12-foot ceiling with wooden beams and around the space, the cabin opened into a fresh and airy front room. A Navajo rug and pumpkin spice scent welcomed the group. The statuettes and paintings of horses from local artists on and among the walls enchanted Morgan.
Most of the furniture were wooden and rich in reds and dark chocolate browns. With the exception of a glass-top coffee table and a few cushioned chairs around it, the room was open space with additional sofas, small tables, and chairs near the walls.
Silas and Avalon walked slowly around this space—enjoying the pumpkin spice scent and viewing some of the artwork.
Morgan emerged from the east hallway.
“Did you have a good hike?”
Avalon laughed, “Not too bad, but Silas needs a break.”
“Don’t be silly. I’m good,” he said in a huff.
Morgan motioned for the crew to follow her. “We’ll have lunch, and then a tour. I’ll brief you on your assignment details afterwards.”
Silas tried to keep cool, but was shaking inside. He was excited, but afraid of what he was about to see.
An hour later after lunch, the tour began.
Morgan led Avalon and Silas down the central hallway of the first floor, east of the main room. They came upon a set of plaques four feet up on the wall. Each plaque had writing on the top half about the founding of the state’s capital.
Morgan lightly brushed her fingers over the carved writing on the first plaque. The writing generated a quick red glow, as it scanned her finger prints. That prompted the dead end wall in front of them to slide open.
It was a hidden elevator. Silas and Avalon looked at each other amazed. There were no buttons for each floor number. Silas swallowed hard as the elevator kept going after 45 seconds.
Avalon saw how nervous Silas was. She asked Morgan, “How many underground floors?”
“Three.”
The elevator door opened. What Silas and Avalon saw ripped away their own preconceived ideas of reality. The underground lab was a mini-world.
The sheer space, over half an acre, was lit up from solar panels originating from the cabin’s roof. The roof's solar panels filtered the sunshine through the glass panels in the lab's ceiling.
On the northeast section of the lab, encased in glass walls, was a self-sustaining botanical garden and food center.
To the southeast was a station with organic clothes hangers and tables of textiles and clothing.
The northwest had tables with several mobile tech tools and inventions, some unidentifiable. A few smartphones with cameras were seen, but there were not for consumer usage.
In the southwest corner, there was an empty space except for a door.
In the middle of the room was a long dark blue table.
At the far north, against the wall, was the command center.
Silas and Avalon were eyes-locked on this center—a computer station with a 10 x 20 ft. wide monitor. Morgan introduced it as the brain of the lab.
“It’s called Gabriel’s Trumpet.”
The students could barely speak. Avalon knew parts of Morgan’s research work, but this lab blew her away!
She had a feeling that this secret base was just a basic project in the eyes of Morgan and Francisco.
“We’ll sit at the meeting table,” said Morgan. She motioned to the blue table.
A five minute walk to their seats, Avalon and Silas tried to soak everything in. Impossible!
As they took their seats at the table, Morgan faced the two shell-shocked students.
Now, the next step of the plan will be revealed.
Chapter 10
Morgan opened a palm-sized purple case that was on the table. Inside was a small glass case, the size of a thumb. She held the object between her thumb and forefinger. Inside was a dark brown specimen.
“This is the blood sample,” said Morgan.
Silas was in unbelief, “There’s no way!”
“Heinrich stole it from Ezra. I stole it back.”
“When,” Avalon gasped.
“During the alarm,” Silas answered.
“No,” Morgan calmly replied. “A week before that.”
“So, you had absolutely nothing to do with the gallery alarm?”
“Avalon...you know better than that,” Morgan lectured,
“Of course I tripped the alarm!”
“Okay Morgan. I see, it was just a distract—.”
Before Avalon could get another word in, Gabriel’s Trumpet lit up.
On the giant monitor appeared a rotating 3-D image of the encased blood specimen. To the right of the image was an information panel. A series of numbers, including the dimensions of the tiny sample, were there. Below that, was the summary of the aDNA—ancient DNA—analysis results of the blood.
“There has been a lot of improvements in ancient DNA analysis, especially in sequencing. Researchers are finally catching up to what we have—Bless them,” Morgan chuckled. “What you see here, no one outside us and my team know about this.”
An image of a silver tool pops up beside the encased blood specimen hologram. The tool looked as thin as a straw, but seemed made of metal. Silas pointed to the screen.
“What’s that?”
Morgan zoomed in on it.
“It’s a portable laser. It can scan the blood sample through the glass causing little degradation to the specimen. The laser itself connects to our computer’s network and scans through millions of DNA, genetics, and archaeological research.”
“I see,” Silas said in astonishment.
“What are the findings so far,” asked Avalon.
Morgan--eyes still fixed on the screen--explained, “We haven’t completed the search yet. It’s on 55%.”
“So, when it’s 100%—.”
“At the very least, we’ll know if this belongs to a man from Apostle Paul’s lifetime. We may unlock a medical breakthrough.”
Morgan turned her attention back to the students. She pulled out two documents from her black brief case next to her chair.
“These are your copies, your new instructions.”
Avalon and Silas took their copies. They began to read. Morgan stopped them.
“They’re self explanatory, but listen up.”
The two put down their copies.
“The documents Dr. Ezra sent to you was just the beginning of what you need to know. After today, we’ll send you to where we’re hiding him.”
Avalon clapped her hands together.
Silas let out a big, "Yes."
Morgan continued, “For now, you’ll help me to shoo away the assassins," looks at her watch, "coming here in—.”
BLAST!
Gabriel’s Trumpet alarm! The monitor switched to flashing red lights.
Morgan jumped up, “Come on!”
They ran to the command center. The flashing screen then transformed to a four-panel security monitor. Views of the scenic outdoors from the East, West, North, and South of the cabin were shown through security cameras. Assassins were everywhere with black hoods and masks in full view.
As Morgan yelled “Panel 4 ZOOM!”, Hannibal busted through the side black door. The monitor zoomed in on Panel 4. They saw one of the assassins close up. On his head gear was the orange symbols FT.
“Forked Tongue,” Avalon blasted.
“Morgan,” Hannibal huffed out. “Which station?”
“Go to the east peak.”
“Is Silas going with me?”
“No! He’s staying with me."
Avalon breathed in relief. Silas noticed. He wrapped his arm around her.
Hannibal was almost out the door.
“Hannibal! Plans changed. No prep time! Ambush launch in 5 minutes!”
Hannibal growled “You got it!” He flew out the door. It slammed back and locked itself.
By this time, both of Morgan’s hands were on the control panel keyboard. Fingers were at warp speed typing codes and pushing color-coded buttons. Coordinates, outdoor views, and words like ‘engage’ and ‘execute’ zipped by on the screen. She then stopped.
“Ambush countdown ENGAGE!”
She turned to Silas. “Go to the right section of the keyboard.”
Damascus Code Page 13