Twenty-five

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 In a dark room, seated across an oval-shaped table were the representatives of the great powers on the planet of Terra. Each of them belonged to countries with permanent seats and veto power in the UN Security Council. Among them was the secretary of energy of the United States government, Secretary James Minos. He was the brother of the President, Stuart Minos, and the one chosen to represent not only his country but his family. The Minos family was once a part of the Great Magical Family of the Golden Dawn organization. But over the generations of them giving birth to talentless Wizards, their magical gift had dwindled to the point that they had become just like the mundane humans of Terra. Without their Magic, they had no place in the Golden Dawn, and their influence in the Hidden world was lost as none of them could interact with the Grey that hid the supernatural world. But what they did have was the wealth their ancestor had generated. The wealth that they had invested in the scientific and technological breakthroughs that Terra had gone through since the Cold War. Though the mundane Terrans were advancing, they still had a lot of years before they could catch up with the advanced civilization of the Hidden World, much less that of other planets in the universe. But the Minos family was determined to make that happen. They still longed for the power that their family had lost, doing everything in their might to regain their former power. And then fifty years ago, the Minos family had struck gold. They had been invited to become part of a great opportunity that would see their family regain their power and more. James Minos, a six-foot man with sleek short curly black hair, a goatee on an angular face with emerald green eyes. On his forehead was a symbol of an ankh engraved on it like a birthmark. This mark showed that James Minos was an Awakened human, something that should be impossible, and yet he wore it proudly, making sure that the other representative could see it. The others eyed the evolved human before them, knowing full well that among the five of them, he was the strongest. Seated across the table was a woman with pale white skin, black lustrous long hair, a very cold beauty, and sensual red lips. Though she looked humanoid, she was not a member of the human race. She was a member of the Daemon race, an Awakened Daemon just like James was an Awakened human. Her name was Medb Lethderg, and she was the chosen representative of one of the four lands in the Hidden World. Medb couldn't help but smirk at the envy that the four Mystic humans shoved at James Minos. It was the same for her as other members of her race gave her the same look. She turned around to see who else was also present. There were some missing people, like the representative of the Spring court who had allied with them. The other two courts were not part of this alliance as they were affiliated with the Golden Dawn. And Maxwell Delacroix was also not here. It was just the six of them. Medb didn't like that she was the only one who was non-human here. Though they were all Terrans, members of the same planets, as a Daemon Medb had a proud and superior nature as other members of her race. And to be surrounded by people who she viewed below her served as an insult to her. Of course, Medb didn't voice her frustration or get into any battles of words. Preferring to keep her opinions to herself. Though Minos was a human, he was an Awakened like Medb, who had reached the Ascended Rank while she was still in the Heroic rank. James not only had a powerful gratia from the seal on his forehead, but he had also awakened a bloodline ability. Something that Medb did not have as she was still in the Heroic rank. She had discovered his strength years ago when she had challenged him to a fight. The result was his win and since then, Medb had seen him in a new light. Although she was of a stronger race, she couldn't deny the power that James as a warrior had. James Minos sighed, looking at the empty seats that belonged to the Spring court representative, the Ogoad representative of the corporation industry in the mundane world, and most of all their leader, the one responsible for leading the secret society which all of them secretly belonged to. Before James could open his mouth, a flash of light appeared in the seat of the spring court representative, revealing a hologram of a woman in a white dress with green long hair and a sensual body. She had an otherworldly beauty that could still be seen even in a hologram form. And in another seat, a hologram of Maxwell Delacroix appeared.

"Forgive me for the tardiness," Sophia Sinclair addressed the upper echelons of the secret society known as Octagram. The five representatives of the great power of the UN shook their heads, showing subservience towards her.

"There is nothing to forgive, my Lady," The Chinese representative said. Medb couldn't help but sneer at the human's attitude. Though they were not the leaders of the various factions within Octagram, for someone like him to have no pride. Medb wanted an apology because she had been waiting here for a long time.

"Excuse me, but we were summoned a long time ago, and you're only just showing up," Medb said. "Where is the Herald? What's going on with the project?" There were many things that Medb wanted to know and report back to her Lady, which was why she had come as early as possible when she got the alert. Especially with the situation that was going on in the Hidden World.

"Unfortunately the Herald can't be here," Sophia said. "She is still in her seclusion, and can't come out before the time is right. As such, I'll be taking over this meeting." They all kept silent, knowing full well that after the Herald, Sophia Sinclair was the second in charge, and angering her was not the best move. Even Medb who was once reprimanding the human for his lack of pride. "The situation is not looking good. The Beast King has made his move, attacking Cedar Lake."

"Then does that mean..." James said.

"Yes, he plans on Terraforming the land," Sophia said. Her hands were clenched together in front of her face as she addressed the others. "Golden Dawn was keeping an eye on the place, so we thought it would be safe, but the forces were not enough to stop their rampage."

"I thought a Guardian was assigned to the area," The French representative said. They all knew how valuable and important Cedar Lake was to their plan.

"Yes, but unfortunately the two Guardians in the area were not Awakened," Sophia said. "They did not have the strength to fight against four Greater Abominations leading a horde of Lessers."

"So Cedar Lake is done for," Medb said.

"For now, we will leave it alone. Our focus must be on Project Starseed," Sophia said.

"What about the Asha'yee," Delacroix said. "If I'm not mistaken, Sector Zero has made its move on her. Mallus has sent his Assassins after her. It's only a matter of time before she dies." 

"And how do you know that," Medb said. The presence of sector zero on Terra was a delicate situation that Octagram and Golden Dawn were dealing with. If they planned to succeed, they needed to get rid of their presence. On the other hand, for Sector Zero to destroy their plans, all they had to do was kill the Asha'yee. "The girl is protected by the Titanium Blade goddess."

"Who is also allied with some people from Starlight," Delacroix said. "We must do something about Golden Dawn. Retrieving the Asha'yee should be our priority."

"I have told you before Maxwell, the girl stays with the Haravok boy," Sophia said.

"If Project Starseed is to work, don't we need it," Delacroix said. "If she's the key to getting it, why is there not an urgency to acquire her."

"Because like I said before, there is a right time and place," Sophia said. "The Herald has put an insurance in case she is in danger from Sector Zero, so we shouldn't be concerned about her. Our focus should be on New York City where the experiment is taking place." All the members turned silent as they turned to look at James. As part of the United States government, and his family controlling the country, it had been easy to put New York on Lockdown. The rest of the country believed that some kind of epidemic was going on and that the city was on lockdown to prevent the spread. To prevent any unwanted attention to the city, through their control of the media, they had managed to cast a brainwashing spell on the masses to make it easier for them to believe the cover-up. It was all for the greater good. 

"Unfortunately the experiment has been tainted," James said. "I don't know how...but it seems the Beast King has made some changes to the mutagenic virus that was spread in New York."

"The Blackearth virus," Sophia said. Not long ago, Sophia had instructed her people to release the serum in New York to see if Project Starseed would be successful in an uncontrollable environment. New York was not the only country she had ordered the serum released. Various countries had been selected, and yet that bastard Beast King had interfered. The Serum had become a plague that was infecting the humans and creating Abominations. Most of these Abominations had been taken by the Beast King which he then used to attack Cedar Lake.

"We have cities in France being attacked by Virus," the French representative said. "We're doing our best to keep the situation out of the media attention, but it's only a matter of time before it becomes too much."

"For now, lockdown each city, and maintain the brainwashing spell to keep the Mundane's attention away," Sophia said. "Though the experiments did not turn out like we wanted, there have been cases of people awakening. Our job is to collect these Awakened ones and bring them into the fold. 

"The Mundane world isn't the only one suffering from the Blackearth virus," Medb said. "The Hidden World is also affected, the amount of Abomination attacks has increased tremendously. Golden Dawn is busy trying to protect the mundane world, while we have to put out the fires on our side." 

"I'm aware of the situation in the Hidden World," Sophia said. "Unfortunately, our forces are spread so thin, not only on these planets, but the other planets. The Fallen Star does not have enough forces to keep the peace, so I'll require the assistance of your Queen. I have already spoken to Lord Al-Thauri and he has taken action. I'm afraid that you have to use as much of your people to contain the threat. Until our plans reach fruition." Medb gnashed her teeth but said nothing only nodding.

"The Awakening ritual is nearly upon us," Sophia said. "Until that time, we must do our best to hold back our enemies, no matter how much we suffer. Soon, our lost empire shall be revived, and the Age of Terrans shall be known across the galaxy.'

****

 After the meeting came to a close, Maxwell Delacroix was back in his office, in Flushing Bay Village in Bel-yor City. He couldn't help but sneer as the words of Sophia Sinclair ran through his mind. The Age of Terrans. The Fallen Stars believed that they could challenge the Divine Federation. Delacroix was once a Paladin of Starlight, and though he had lost his position as a Knight of the Federation due to his criminal activities, he was not foolish enough to fight against his homeworld. So why was Delacroix, one of the biggest names in the Criminal underworld of the galaxy a part of the secret society of Terran? That was because Delacroix only cared about one thing. Himself. His deals with the Herald before the Uprising had taken place, twenty years ago, had seen him consolidate his power among the Criminal faction. He had supplied the Fallen Stars with the weapons and bombs that had been used to attack the Capital planet, Agartha back then. Of course, he had thought that none of the weapons would be traced back to him. The bomb used to kill the former council members of Starlight would implicate him if it was ever discovered. The Herald had assured him that it wouldn't and he had done his best to make sure any evidence had been erased. And with the help of the Herald, Delacroix had spread his territory to the Neutral Free Zone. As such, he had been given a seat on the Octagram council. Though he had no stakes in the planet of Terra, his desire to expand his influence within the Hidden World had made him take the seat. But now, Delacroix was in a perilous situation. A situation that could cost him his life.... a figure appeared out of the shadows. He was dressed in a black coat, a black horned mask covering his face, and his presence filled the entire room. Delacroix whimpered feeling his presence.

"How was the meeting," Mallus said.

"Sophia Sinclair refuses to take the girl out of the Golden Dawn," Delacroix said. Mallus tsked, his disapproval making Delacroix sweat. Delacroix knew that the only reason he was alive, was because this man needed him alive. And so far, Delacroix had hardly kept up his part of the deal. Yes, he had revealed some things to Mallus, the truth about one of his men, revealing to Mallus about the Erlking who was compromised, who then spread the news to the Beast King who infected the Erlking to keep Leon from getting the information he wanted. But those were just tiny tidbits that Mallus didn't need. What Mallus needed was for the girl to leave the safety of Adonis and Phoebe Yesh, so he could kill her. He had sent his assassins to kill her, but the girl had survived. Somehow. Feeling Mallus's frustration, Delacroix rushed to complete his report. "Right now, their attention is occupied by the Blackearth virus, and the attack on Cedar Lake so they can't focus on obtaining the girl."

"At least that part is going well," Mallus said. He was glad that the Beast King was doing his part. The only reason he had allied with that Abomination was because he needed the chaos that the Abomination was sowing. The chaos would be an excuse to explain the reason for the Cleansing he had ordered. A cleansing was a ritual performed to purify a planet that had become infected with too much Infernal energy. It was not something that could just be ordered without explicit reason. Mallus did not want to draw too much attention. After what they had done to Lamentias, Congress would be keeping an eye on them. Mallus couldn't afford to be seen as abusing his power. Mallus intended to use this cleansing to wipe out as much of the Terran inhabitants as possible. This way, the path to colonizing this planet would become so much easier. This was the decree that his god, the Divine Emperor, had given unto him. And Mallus intended to fulfill it.

"So while they are busy dealing with the crisis, you will bring to me the resources that the Herald requested of you," Mallus said.

"You want me to personally bring them," Delacroix said. In one of his many factories in the Hidden World, were tools and equipment that Delacroix had acquired under the Herald's commands. He was soon due to transfer them to a special place that played some kind of part in the Herald's plan. He was just waiting for the word.

"Yes, bring it yourself. Your time here will soon come to an end," Mallus said. "Do this, and your crimes against the Federation will be overlooked. You will be given a second chance."

"Yes, My Lord," Delacroix said.

"Fail me..." A huge pressure bore down on Delacroix, making him groan in pain. Even someone who was of a Supreme rank could not resist the Spiritual pressure that Mallus released upon him. "....You will wish for the comforts of the Nine hell."