B4. 22.1 – Preparing for the Party

Cecilia (Mad Scientist)

Cecilia whistled to herself, layering a tune over the whirs and electronic beeps of different machines. She simultaneously ran separate tests on different slices of the specimen’s brain. Cecilia didn’t show it to Deen and Erind, but she, above all, was most interested in finding an answer.

Her crafted pills were supposed to prevent seeding; she added an addictive element to ensure constant consumption. It served the dual purpose of maintaining an income stream for the PCM while keeping Adumbrae away from this side of the veil. Curiously, withdrawal from the pills caused seeding, even in people who were probably not predisposed to it.

This was a supreme failure!

As a scientist, failure wasn’t unfamiliar to Cecilia. Failure was required to progress. Perfection was stagnation. She was proud of the number of her failures, even more so of how she overcame them. However, this failure was the complete opposite of Cecilia’s goal. To add to the embarrassment, she didn’t have the slightest clue what could’ve caused this.

While reading the results of a scan, Cecilia held up two fingers and touched her lips. The last time she had an urge to smoke was when that blue-haired psychopath, Myra Fletcher, squished her previous vessel. It wasn’t long ago.

As a mere detached head then, Cecilia didn’t have the lungs to smoke. She had lungs now. She should’ve asked the girls to buy her cigarettes. Only fitting because they brought nothing but stress since their first meeting.

Cecilia went through her mental list of the pill’s components. The chemicals. Their interactions with the brain. None of them should touch the Vaidya Dots. A reaction might have had the unforeseen result of brain damage that somehow led to a weakened Eloyce Field. But if that were the case, cessation of the pill’s consumption shouldn’t lead to seeding—this was the most difficult part of the puzzle to decipher.

“How odd…” Cecilia stared at the screen while tapping her lips.

This Adumbrae brain appeared normal in preliminary tests, as opposed to the brains of Adumbrae produced through the artificially induced seeding on Red Island. Natural seeding? How? This only brought more questions.

“This will take some time,” Cecilia said, typing the commands for the next round of tests. The excitement of solving a unique puzzle replaced her irritation at failure.

The girls would be amenable to staying the night at Barstow. A few nights? They should trust Cecilia enough to leave her here while they stayed at a motel. Some measure of trust.

Not complete trust. Cecilia knew Erind lied about her power. Cecilia, specifically her head, witnessed a mechanical humanoid fight one of Cecilia’s captured Adumbrae test subjects.

Cecilia couldn’t properly hear the girls’ conversation at that time, having just separated from her vessel. But she gleaned that Erind could conjure a mechanical humanoid out of thin air and transfer her mind into it. Cecilia also heard the name ‘Eren’, which turned out to be ‘Erind’.

Erind didn’t have shapeshifting powers. The truth was that her mechanical humanoid form had multiple abilities. Most likely, it could hack bio-scanners. Combined with projecting images, Erind infiltrated the Roost with no issues and kidnapped an Adumbrae. The likeness of the truck driver earlier was another projection hiding the machine underneath. Erind’s real body must be inside the truck.

It’s why Erind told us to leave, Cecilia thought. Erind could’ve more easily disposed of the Adumbrae and truck with their help, but she’d risk Cecilia uncovering the truth of her power.

What about Erind’s little souvenir?

Based on Erind and Deen’s reactions, the crystal must be part of Erind’s Core. There was something very different with that girl, including the discoloration on her neck that was no longer there. Myra told Cecilia that their artificial Cores didn’t bring about bodily changes.

Did Erind have a special one?

Cecilia had little hunches about Erind’s Core. Foremost of which was that Erind was a seeded individual. An artificial Core had been implanted on her to try and stem the seeding. A crazy idea? Myra had told Cecilia that this ‘Professor’ tried various ways to help Kelsey, a Manifested Adumbrae. Perhaps Erind was another experiment of stopping seeding, this time, with an artificial Core.    

It is… a crazy idea, conceded Cecilia. But only crazy could describe Erind’s souvenir. Cecilia would learn the truth someday.

Deen and Erind had their secrets. Cecilia had hers.

It was fine.

They’d help each other until one no longer needed the other. Who’d be first to drive the split?

A blinking notification on the corner of the screen, accompanied by a distinct ding, drew Cecilia’s attention. She opened the feed of the security camera pointed at the historical exhibit.

Deen and Erind.

Back so soon? They didn’t trust Cecilia as much as she thought.

Cecilia continued with her work until Deen and Erind entered the laboratory. “We’re in danger,” Deen declared. “My power alerted me.”

“Do you know the nature of this danger?” Cecilia asked with a neutral tone. She was yet to discover the full extent and actual mechanics of Deen’s power. But it was reassuring to know Deen was her ally, albeit temporarily.

“I already told you that my power doesn’t work that way,” Deen said.

A lie, Cecilia thought. When the PCM member from the Otay commune tried to hijack their truck, Deen knew how to stop him from shooting and shouting. Deen might have superior reflexes, or her actions could’ve been a fluke, but the fact they’d all been safe so far was unnatural to Cecilia.

Of course, Cecilia didn’t confront Deen about this. Deen would lie and be more guarded. Cecilia would have to figure it out herself.

Cecilia continued with her experiments. “How can we prepare if we don’t know anything about this danger? Is leaving our only option? I can’t cut short solving the mystery of my crafter pills.”

“We didn’t waste our time strolling through Barstow Station,” Deen said. “We observed several suspicious individuals, as if they’re on guard. I think our enemy is also watching the parking lot. We can’t just leave.”

“Let’s learn more, shall we?” A few taps on her keyboard, and Cecilia brought up a grid on a floating display. Each smaller square on the wide screen displayed a tapped security camera on Barstow Station.

“Whoa! This is neat,” Erind said. “Just like a spy movie.”

“We are spying on people,” Cecilia said, trying to give Erind a friendly smile. Erind and Deen often argued. An opportunity to divide them might present itself someday. For now, Cecilia had to rely on them for protection. “Identify these suspicious individuals to me.”

“Can you check who has been here before we arrived?” Deen asked. She probably couldn’t pinpoint the actual danger—her power wasn’t that accurate, but it gives more information than a sense of foreboding. “I think our enemy has been surveilling this place for some time.”

“I’ll compare the footage from an hour before we arrived to the present footage,” said Cecilia. “And I’ll run an analysis to match the faces. We’ll see who’s new and who's not.”

“Who do you think this is, Cecilia?” Erind asked. “I just told Deen this can’t be the BID, or they would’ve—”

“Died,” said Cecilia.

“They would’ve found your laboratory, triggered your booby trap,” Erind said, “and died. Doesn’t the same go for everybody else? Red Hood, Big Marcy, and Euphonia. Maybe Auron? Any other candidates?”

Cecilia looked up at the ceiling and scratched her chin. “I have many enemies besides those three. But I don’t believe they’re hunting me.”

“Like, if someone’s waiting for us here,” said Erind, “they must know this place is important to us. Barstow Station isn’t exactly somewhere someone would frequent unless they were hiding something here. Lots of ‘somes’…”

“The danger must be either Auron or Euphonia,” Deen said. “Assuming Euphonia had captured PCM members who knew about our stopover. No other faction would know about our connection to Barstow Station.”

“Well, Auron’s not really dangerous,” said Erind. “I don’t think he’ll dare fight us. That leaves Euphonia.”

“I agree.” Cecilia estimated a ninety-two percent chance that Erind’s guess was correct.

She shouldn’t be surprised that Euphonia had found her this fast. Their moving about different locations only delayed the inevitable. But Cecilia wasn’t worried. After spending time with Deen and Erind, Cecilia had adjudged them more capable and also violent than her initial assessment. With her help, these two would be suitable security up to a certain threshold.

Deen turned to Cecilia. “Why didn’t Euphonia look for your hidden lab? She knows you’d have prepared a spare body, and it must’ve been stowed here. She has the means to turn this place upside down to search for it.”

“Euphonia knows me…” Cecilia slowly replied. “She must’ve expected the trap. Then, she ordered a subordinate to keep watch for my return, intending to strike when we’re here. I wouldn’t activate the bomb if I were caught in its blast radius.”

“How did they know we’re here?” Erind asked.

“They don’t seem to know our identities,” Deen said. “No one tailed Erind and me.”

Cecilia looked around the laboratory. Various machines continuously analyzed the brain sample. She also pushed the growing vats to their maximum energy, hastening the development of her children inside them. She was preparing for the enemy, but her actions alerted the enemy to her presence. Another failure.

“Electricity,” Cecilia said, forcefully exhaling every annoyance in her body. This wasn’t the time to brood. “I’ve rigged the wires to route electricity directly from the main utility line to this laboratory, bypassing Barstow Station’s meter. The owner would’ve been suspicious if I added my electrical consumption to his bill.”

“That’s electricity theft,” Erind said.

Cecilia smiled. “The least of my crimes. I should’ve bought a modified Greaves reactor from the Tea Party for my laboratory. I’m uncertain if monitoring power consumption was the enemy’s method of detecting us, but they now know we’re here.”

“They’re not sure who we are,” Deen said.

“If not yet, they will figure it out soon,” said Cecilia. “We didn’t enter through the entrance of Barstow Station. But you and Erind roamed its premises. Anyone keeping watch would wonder how you’ve come inside.”

“Are you saying we made a mistake by going out?” Deen icily asked. “The enemy wouldn’t have been on the lookout if not for your unsorted power issues.”

“I’m not pointing any fingers,” said Cecilia. “My intention is to aid in painting the complete picture of our situation. If we exit through the main building, we will be found. If we use the hidden path through the train car, those waiting by the parking lot would notice us. It’ll be suspicious that we popped out from behind the building.”

“Is that them?” Erind pointed at the screens.

The computer had honed in on ten targets. Eight inside. Two outside.

“My system has determined their movements don’t coincide with the habits of the average Barstow Station goer.” Cecilia pressed one of the smaller squares. It expanded to the whole floating display—it showed a young girl with pigtails, likely less than ten years of age, standing at the edge of the parking area alone. “They no longer care about discretion. This is more proof that they know we’re here.”

Deen stepped forward. “This has to be an Adumbrae controlling a child or pretending to be one.”

“None of these individuals converse with one another,” Cecilia said, flipping through different feeds. “Yet, they move in a concerted manner throughout the premises. I don’t see any earpieces or radios. They must be controlled by a single Adumbrae.”

“Sounds like you know who this is,” Erind said.

Cecilia nodded. “One of Euphonia’s Adumbrae subordinates. He goes by the name Botfly Bruno—a descriptive alias. I haven’t seen him, but I’ve seen the swarm of flies that he controls. They deposit eggs in their victims that hatch into mind-controlling larvae.”

“Gross,” Erind said. “There are much cleaner ways of mind-control.”

“The infected hosts obey Botfly Bruno’s will,” Cecilia continued. “But they don’t share senses with him, explaining why none of the hosts immediately recognized either of you. He’s the Adumbrae who fits the puzzle.”

“Knowing what we’re up against, what do we do?” Deen asked.

“We should leave,” said Cecilia.

“But they’re watching the—” Erind started to say.

“The infected hosts can’t stop us,” Cecilia interjected. “Can’t stop you, I should say. Bruno’s larvae can give their hosts super strength and minor powers, but that wouldn’t be enough to fight you. Defeat them and drive away.” Cecilia didn’t want to leave; she wanted to know their response.

“We’ll be followed by Euphonia’s stronger subordinates,” said Deen. “I’m sure Botfly Bruno has already raised the alarm, as well as deposited flies in all the parked cars. We can’t lose them. I don’t think it’s wise to fight on the road.”

“Yep,” Erind said. “Either Euphonia’s goons get us or passing cars will report us to the BID, who’ll also get us. I bet our car’s going to be totaled in the fight, too.”

“True…” Cecilia narrowed her eyes. “It sounds to me like you two already have the consensus of staying before returning here. I surmise it’s part of Deen’s ability, and I won’t ask anything about it. But I trust that you have a plan? Your purchases must be part of it.” She gestured at the red clothes wrapped in plastic that Erind held.

“We haven’t formulated a plan yet,” Deen said. “We bought this because—”

“I have a plan,” Erind said.

Deen glanced at Erind. Her annoyed scowl was visible for only half a second before she wiped her face and wore a supportive expression. “Let’s hear it.”

“Step one: Call the BID,” Erind said. “Step two—”

“What do you mean call the BID?” Deen asked. “We should avoid…” Deen breathed deeply and then exhaled. “Sorry for the interruption. I’ll ask questions after you’ve explained your plan.”

Erind furrowed her brows while staring at Deen. “Anyway… Step Two: Get people out of Barstow Station. We’re going to fight Euphonia’s goons inside here. Trigger the fire alarm or something? Wait, that won’t be too effective.”

“I’ll release one of my children,” said Cecilia. “The sight of a monster would drive out everyone. It will also call the BID to this place.”

“That’s an awesome suggestion, Cecilia,” Erind said.

“I’m following your lead.” Cecilia pointed at Erind’s parcel. “I presume you’ll pretend to be Red Hood and confront Euphonia’s subordinates?”

“Ye-yeah…” Erind glanced at Deen. A surprised that Deen simply nodded. “I’ll pretend to be Red Hood,” Erind said with more conviction. “But I can’t go around the entire Barstow Station to scare everyone away—I’ll have to fight.”

Cecilia gestured at the rows of vats. “I’ll release all of my children for our cause. It is the ultimate sacrifice of a mother.”

Erind blinked. “You’ll seriously doing that?”

“Yes. I believe that my children should have an opportunity to walk and experience life before… their unfortunate death. I understand that there’s no path that my laboratory survives this day.”

Deen looked at Cecilia and Erind. “What are you talking about?”

“Erind.” Cecilia locked eyes with her. “Tell me, do you intend for me to destroy my base along with Euphonia’s subordinates and responding BID agents?”