The Relics- The Keystone Trilogy - Part 1

by Michael K. Damron

  “Uh, there’s not much more we can tell you right now, except that not just anyone can access a relic’s power,” said Clarkson. “You, on the other hand, being your father’s son, may be able to—”

  “DAMMIT, CLARKSON!” yelled Mr. White. “I think you’ve divulged enough intel to James’s son.”

  Jack thought back to his father’s video message, when he was told to accept Mr. White’s invitation to join the AEB—an invitation he had yet to receive. He was anxious about the situation he found himself in.

  “Are you saying that you believe I can use an exo like my father?” said Jack.

  “That’s the idea,” said Mr. White, taking a long, deep breath. “But before we get ahead of ourselves, we need to know what you know about the missing relic we’ve been asking about.”

  Knowing it would become inevitable for Jack to divulge the fact that the relic his father borrowed was now fused with him, he began to remove the morphacite secretly clinging to him under his shirt. It made its way down his arms and through his shirt sleeves, resembling a viscous black liquid as it formed into a solid cube on the desk surface. The agents gasped when they saw the substance materialize from within Jack’s shirt.

  Mr. White was shocked. “So this means—”

  “Yes,” said Jack, “I came into contact with a relic and it attached itself to me.”

  “And the morphacite?” said Welsh.

  “It used to be a box. At least, that’s how it came to me. It was like a container surrounding the sphere. I got this nice wound from it too.” Jack held up the palm of his hand to show off the three puncture wounds.

  Mr. White’s face turned pale and he audibly whispered to Clarkson, “How in the hell did a morphacite container also go missing without our knowledge?”

  “I don’t know, boss. A lot of strange things have been happening lately. There could be a mole in the division,” said Clarkson.

  “You think I haven’t thought of that?” said Mr. White.

  “Jack, where did you find the container with the relic?” said Welsh.

  “Um, it was just randomly in my dorm room one day,” said Jack, remembering to keep how he received it a mystery.

  “Do you know who gave it to you?”

  “No, not at all. It was just there.”

  “Unbelieveable,” said Welsh, turning to Mr. White. “It could have been Nigel.”

  “Just great,” said Mr White.

  “Nigel? I met him during my father’s funeral,” said Jack. “He told me he and my dad were close working partners.”

  “You’re right about that,” said Clarkson, beginning to fill with emotion and talking more to himself than anyone else in the room. “We were all close to Nigel and your father—the whole team. It wasn’t enough for the zealots to murder James, they had to take out Nigel too.”

  “THAT’S ENOUGH, CLARKSON!” yelled Mr. White.

  Jack was taken aback at the news of Nigel’s death, but he was not prepared to hear that his father had been murdered.

  “My mother and I were told that Dad died of a heart attack in his office,” he said with a trembling voice. “I didn’t want to believe my otherwise healthy father could die of a cardiac issue, but murder!”

  “I’m afraid so, Jack,” said Mr. White, frustrated. “And now that Clarkson has given you more information than he should have, I might as well tell you what we’re dealing with here. There’s a terrorist group who’s trying to acquire the relics and prevent the AEB, or anyone for that matter, from getting them. These relics hold in them great power and greater secrets yet to be discovered, ones that could give rise to complete utopia for all of humanity. But these bastard rogues, they want to use the relics for malicious intentions. They murdered your father, stripping him of his exo, and left his body at our front doorstep. Only yesterday they took Nigel from us. We’ve tried our best to stop these monsters, but they keep eluding us.”

  Jack sat silent, unsure of what to make of the news. His father told him in the video that everything would be explained to him. But the facts in his possession were that Nigel and his father were murdered by a group hell-bent on using an ancient technology for evil—a technology now adhered to his body. Jack became overwhelmed with feelings of confusion and anger.

  “Jack, your father made it his mission to protect the relics and the future of everything we know and love,” said Mr. White. “Just like him, you have some very rare markers on your DNA that allow you to gain access to the power a relic possesses. There are others in the AEB that were part of your father’s research team, also with exos. His leadership was second to none. We are now at a critical point where some of our top talent is no longer with us, but we must still fight off the malevolent onslaught and make sure they don’t claim any more of us, or the relics, for themselves.”

  “Is there a chance I can be of any help?” said Jack.

  “Seeing as how you are your father’s son and quite literally attached to one of our relics, I’d like to implore you to join our division of the AEB. I pray I can trust in you like I did with James. There’s a chance you could become an indispensable asset that benefits the team and our research. Besides, I can promise you it would be more fulfilling than whatever technologist job you’d take.”

  “. . . How do you know—”

  “I know what I need to know,” said Mr. White.

  Jack thought for a moment, still unsure if he should be a part of something that led to the end of his father’s life. But he couldn’t stop himself from remembering what his dad said on the video, asking him to join the AEB and not be afraid. He stood up from behind the desk.

  “I’ll join your team,” he said, unsure of what he was getting himself into.

  “That’s excellent news, Jack!” said Clarkson, shaking Jack’s hand. “Your dad was a father figure to all of us, so I’m sure you’ll soon be like a brother.”

  “You were part of my dad’s team?”

  “Damn right, and proud of it. Both Alexie and I,” he said, motioning toward Welsh.

  “Alexie?”

  “Well I suppose now the jig is up. Ain’t that right, Mr. White?” said Clarkson.

  “Welsh and Clarkson aren’t these agents’ real names,” said Mr. White. “Welsh’s real name is Alexie and Clarkson’s is Butch. They also have an exo attached to them, just like you. And now that you’re on board, the three of you will soon be getting to know one another very well.”

  Alexie made an effort to shake Jack’s hand. “I’m sure it’ll be a pleasure to work with you.”

  “Same here,” said Jack.

  “And since you’ll be a member of my team, you can call me John,” said Mr. White. “No need to worry about formalities. Any team member is considered family, as far as I’m concerned.”

  “Okay,” said Jack, “John it is.”

  “Now, I’d like to not waste any time,” said John. “Go home tonight and pack up some clothes and any personal things you may need. Tell your mother whatever you’d like, but absolutely do not mention how your father actually died. I’ll send a car to pick you up in the morning, let’s say around 11 a.m., and you’ll be taken to a secure location. From there, we’ll travel together to the facility you’ll do your intelligence and exo training in—the same facility where your father also trained and conducted research.”

  “I’ll be ready,” said Jack. “But I’m not feeling too great about leaving my mom right now. Is there anything you can do to make sure she’s okay? Even if it’s sending someone out to check up on her, that would make me feel better about joining your group. I don’t know how long you intend to keep me away from home, but having a little piece of mind would put me at ease.”

  “Yes, of course,” said John. “I’ll make sure Melissa is looked after and give you opportunities to screen with her as you train at our facility.”

  “Great,” said Jack, “I guess that’s all I really wanted to mention before we meet up again tomorrow.”

  He reached his hand towa
rd the desk and made the morphacite travel back up his arm and spread across his back once more. Mr. White handed him a small box with a few of James’s remaining papers, books, and other stationery for him to take back home. The agents and Jack walked to the front of the building together, shaking hands before Jack hopped into an AEB-branded shuttle that took him home. He thought the meeting went better than expected, but an uneasy feeling stayed with him the entire ride back. John and the other agents seemed all right, perhaps even trustworthy. Jack found it difficult to parse any potential truth from fiction, hoping more would be revealed in the coming days. He couldn’t help but wonder what was in store for him, or to what magnitude the object embedded in his back would affect his future.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  THROUGH THE PORTAL

  After the shuttle dropped Jack off at his house, he walked in to find his mother cooking dinner.

  “You were there quite a while. How did it go?”

  “Just fine, Mom. Probably exactly how you would think,” he said, putting the box with his father’s things on the floor so he could scratch an itch that developed on the base of his neck where the border of the exo and his skin met.

  “Did you see Nigel while you were there? His office was beside your father’s.”

  “Um . . . no, he wasn’t there,” said Jack, thinking it better not to tell her of Nigel’s death.

  “That’s a shame. He’s so nice. So did they mention if they’ll be able to find where your dad’s body went?”

  “Uh, yeah, Mom, they’re on the case,” he said, knowing John and the others still didn’t know.

  His mother breathed a sigh of relief. “Well, I don’t suppose they fed you lunch, did they?”

  “Actually, no,” said Jack, only then realizing how hungry he was.

  “Why am I not surprised? Well, give me a little more time and I’ll get some food in you.”

  Jack and his mom talked a little over dinner, but he tried his best to avoid any conversation that would lead him to talk about what transpired at his father’s old office.

  “You know, Mom, I didn’t tell you, but I’m starting an entry position at a new job tomorrow.”

  “Tomorrow! That’s very soon. How come I haven’t heard about this until now?”

  “Um, I’ve been pretty busy and—”

  “Hold it, hold it! I can’t believe it, but I don’t think I ever asked you about your VAT results. I feel like such a bad parent right now. That’s an important thing I shouldn’t have forgotten about.”

  Melissa placed her head in her hands and Jack thought she was going to start crying about not knowing his test results, when, in reality, he did his absolute best to keep any of his family from remembering to ask about them.

  “Mom, don’t worry! We’ve had some crazy stuff going on. My result was that I’ll be a basic-level technologist, but I don’t want you to be upset. I can try and petition for a retest after a few years.”

  “I’m so very proud of you,” she said, through tearful eyes. “But is that the result you wanted? A technologist?”

  “Sure. I mean, I wanted to be classified as a scientist, but a technologist is a good job and it could lead to good things.”

  “I just want you to be happy, Jackson. I don’t care what you do, as long as it’s something you find meaningful. I know your dad and I always made sure your education came first, but don’t think you have to live up to any expectation we had for you. In the end, we chose to have you. We raised you the best we could. And now, you’re a young man who’s been a blessing and you don’t owe us anything.”

  Jack felt his body overcome with emotion after hearing his mom’s words.

  “Look, Mom, I need to tell you something. The job I’m starting tomorrow . . . is with the AEB.”

  “What?” said Melissa, shocked at the notion. “Did this happen today while you were with Mr. White?”

  “Yes. And I probably wouldn’t have accepted, but the job would help continue what Dad was doing with the AEB. They told me how important his work was, and that I would be a natural fit for the position.”

  “I just don’t know, Jack. I don’t like it. Not one bit. The AEB was good to us during your dad’s time there and now I find it hard to trust anything involving the bureau.”

  “Mom, I’d like you to trust me on this. Mr. White explained the situation and it’s what I want to do.”

  “And what exactly will you be doing?”

  “I don’t know yet, but I’m sure I’ll find out tomorrow.”

  Melissa sat in silence for a moment, contemplating her son’s decision. He could tell she wasn’t happy with his choice.

  “We should finish our food before it gets too cold,” she said. “Then get some rest. It’s been a long day.”

  Jack stared at his bedroom ceiling, finding it hard to fall asleep while trying to remember everything he could from his father’s video message. He was supposed to give an explanation for everything that’s been happening, Jack thought. But he’s gone. He’s not here anymore to tell me or Mom what’s really going on. And now that Nigel’s been murdered too, how am I supposed to find out everything they wanted me to know? Jack wondered if he should tell his mom more than he already had, but didn’t think she could handle additional negative or ambiguous information. It was hours before he was finally able to rest.

  By morning, Jack was completely packed for his journey and went down to his dad’s home office to search for the objects his father tasked him to find. As he rummaged around the top drawer of the storage dresser, he found a collection of three pocket-sized memo books with ruled graph paper and the silver necklace James used to wear. He glanced inside each of the notebooks and saw there were writings and drawings throughout that his father had made. Jack was anxious to read them, but knew he didn’t have the time before being picked up by an AEB shuttle. Remembering his dad wanted him to wear the necklace, he put it on and tucked it under his shirt.

  “Good morning,” said Melissa, poking her head through the doorway.

  “Morning,” said Jack, pocketing the small notebooks.

  “Listen, I know I said last night that I didn’t like the idea of you working with the AEB—I still don’t—but please just remember to be careful. We don’t know how trustworthy they are right now.”

  “I know, Mom. Believe me, I’m feeling the same way.”

  “You are?”

  “Yes. What I’m really wanting to get from working with them is more information about Dad’s role and what led to his death.”

  “Jack . . . It was just something that happened.”

  “Honestly, Mom, how often does someone in their mid-fifties die of a heart attack nowadays? His health was pristine and then it suddenly wasn’t. It doesn’t make sense,” he said, trying to mask the recent knowledge of his father’s murder from her.

  Melissa seemed both touched and concerned with Jack’s tenacity to learn more about his father.

  “Again, just be careful.”

  “I will, Mom.”

  At that moment, Jack received a screen notification that the AEB vehicle had arrived to pick him up.

  “Well, I’m heading out, I guess,” he said, giving his mother a long hug.

  “Keep me in the loop on everything,” said Melissa, anxiously watching as her son grabbed his bags and left the house.

  Butch was in the shuttle to greet Jack as he tossed his bags inside.

  “Again, I’m very excited to have you come along and join our team!”

  “Yeah, thanks, no problem. So where’s John and Alexie?”

  “They’ll be at the departure site when we arrive.”

  Jack sat in silence for a while, trying to watch the route the shuttle took, but the transport vehicle soon started to venture onto heavily wooded roads that he didn’t recognize. An uneasy feeling began to come over Jack as the roads turned from paved to gravel.

  “This place sure is remote,” said Jack.

  “True, but there are certain things we
need to keep secret, as you’ll soon find out, which requires a remote locale,” said Butch, keeping his gaze on the country road.

  After more than an hour of travel, the vehicle pulled up to a small, windowless building where another empty AEB shuttle was parked outside.

  “They’re in the old cabin,” said Butch, pointing at the quaint structure in front of them.

  Jack grabbed his bags and followed Butch to the front entrance, where he watched him place his hand onto a black square on the door that then allowed it to be pushed open.

  John was ready for Jack to walk through the door, greeting him with an outstretched hand. “It’s a pleasure to have you on board. I’m glad you’ve finally arrived.”

  “Are we late?” said Jack.

  “He’s just really excited to show you what our division’s about,” said Alexie in a sarcastic tone, continuing to fixate on a collection of glowing crystals sprawled out in front of her on a large leather rectangle.

  “Come over here, Jack. Let me show you what we’ve got going on,” said John.

  He ushered Jack to where Alexie stood, where he got a closer look at what appeared to be some kind of morphacite that glowed a dull blue. Each piece was held in place by a leather holster and a strap that buttoned on one end. Above all of them were labels with what looked like names of cities and geographic coordinates.

  “What you’re looking at here is a collection of what’s called warp crystals. They allow those with an exo to use them and travel to another location in an instant,” said John. “Alexie, please explain further.”

  “So here’s the deal,” she began, picking up one of the crystals, “this thing used to be a plain old piece of morphacite until someone or something a long time ago implanted it with a specific location anchor point. Some exo wearers have the ability to activate these and warp to where the other side is anchored.”

  “Is it like a wormhole?” said Jack.

  “That’s a possibility, but we’re not exactly sure. It appears to be able to fold space-time so that you can step through a portal and instantly be anywhere else, whether across town or on the other side of the world.”