Rise of the Fallen: Ascensionis
Chapter 13

Adam awakens to nothing but complete darkness due to the bandages wrapped around his face. He tries to speak but only manages an incoherent mumble. He feels a warm hand touch his followed by Rikki telling him, “Easy, Adam. You’re going to be numb for a while but I’m here with you.”

He squeezes her hand tightly and begins to think about his new appearance. Will it be a slight or a complete reformation of his face? To think that last week, he was just an average kid going to school and mowing lawns. Now, he’s involved in a secretive government operation for reasons that he has yet to fully comprehend. How is Melanie handling all of this? Is she still here? Rikki says, “I haven’t informed my superiors of your request yet. I will, though. I promise.”

Adam manages a slight nod to acknowledge that he does understand what was just said to him. She wonders to herself the possibility of having him live with her. They will need to come up with a convincing story for him. Her neighbors would simply replace it bizarre to have him appear suddenly out of nowhere. Although, she is pretty much a private person and tries not to get too close. This may actually work. Time to ask them the question. Rikki turns around and quickly exits the room while taking her cell phone out of her pocket. She places it next to her ear and says in a low tone, “Hello, sir. I need to speak with you right away.”

CEO Diana Garrison is traveling in her private helicopter on her way directly to the StarSun office building to discuss important matters with Dr. Frankenstein regarding business decisions. She is sitting next to the pilot, the very much still alive, tall bald man who was guarding the entrance of Bohemian Grove, when she receives a phone call from an unidentified person. She places the phone on her ear and says authoritatively, “Yes. I’ll be arriving shortly and will be speaking with him directly. I understand.”

Gary Jaeger shields his eyes from the sun’s rays with his hand as he observes Diana’s helicopter approaching while standing on top of the StarSun office building. The gusts of wind emanating from the aircraft’s blades prove to be quite strong and, as a result, he takes a few steps back. The helicopter lands and the engines can be heard shutting down.

Diana exits the aircraft and begins to walk briskly towards Gary. She arrives next to him and asks, “Is he here?”

“Yes. He’s in your office right now.”

She grins and says, “Good. Let’s not keep the good doctor waiting, then.”

Back at Area 51, Frank Garrison gradually opens his eyes and turns his head to his left to replace Joshua and Alexandria leaning on each other in a deep sleep. He tries to make as little noise as possible while attempting to sit himself up. Joshua hears the shifting, however, and immediately wakes up and says, while looking at his grandfather, “Hey, soldier. You’re awake.”

Alexandria rubs her eye with her hand and yawns as Frank says to them, “You two kids didn’t have to keep me company. Those chairs look pretty damn uncomfortable.”

Joshua replies as he stands up, “Don’t worry about it. How you holding up?”

“I’m fine, Josh. Where’s the doctor at?”

The voice of Barbara is heard saying, “He’s meeting up with your daughter, sir.”

Frank focuses his attention on Barbara as she approaches him. Once she arrives, he tells her, “Thanks for helping me out last night. I appreciate it.”

“Not a problem, sir. Are you up to answering a question?”

Joshua becomes a bit worried and asks Barbara, “Don’t you think you should give him some time, Barbara?”

Frank raises his hand slightly and says, “I’m good, Josh. Go ahead. Shoot.”

“You mentioned something about needing to give Dr. Frankenstein important information. What is it, exactly?”

Frank takes a moment to choose his words wisely. He objects to what StarSun has planned but, at the same time, still loves his daughter very much. The last thing that he wants is for her to get involved in a career-ending scandal. He clears his throat and says, “Given my previous involvement in covert military operations, I have obtained information from a reliable source indicating that StarSun plans to intentionally release a virus for the sake of profits. They already have the vaccine prepared.”

Barbara folds her arms in reaction to this somewhat unsatisfactory disclosure of information already known to Dr. Frankenstein. She does not, in this case, wish to show any disrespect and engage in an interrogation of a retired military general. She replies sourly, “Yeah, we know about that. Dr. Frankenstein is trying to replace out if your daughter is aware of what is happening behind the scenes.”

“Okay, good. Hopefully, we can stop this from happening.”

The nurse arrives quite suddenly and says to Frank, “You’re awake. Good. We’ll check your vitals first and get you some breakfast afterward.”

Barbara glances over at Alexandria, unfolds her arms and tells her, “Let’s let them do their job, guys. We can come back later.”

Joshua nods in agreement and pats his grandfather’s shoulder while saying, “You gave me a scare, old man.”

“That’s what I do best.”

The three of them exit the room one at a time. Barbara is the last to exit and stops walking after taking several steps in order to contemplate the information that was given. She has a distinct feeling that Frank Garrison is holding something back. Perhaps to protect his daughter? That’s completely understandable. Barbara has no children of her own but is very aware of the love that a parent has for his, or her, child. If it were not for the deadly threat about to be purposely unleashed to the unwitting public, she would respect that love. It is time to have a chat with Indrid Cold, however.

Dr. Frankenstein is sitting down on a chair in Diana Garrison’s office patiently awaiting her arrival. As he raises his wrist to take a quick glance at the time, the door opens and he immediately rises to his feet. Diana extends her hand as she enters and while shaking his, she says, “I humbly apologize for keeping you waiting, Dr. Frankenstein. This is Dr. Gary Jaeger. He’ll be joining us, if you don’t mind.”

He firmly shakes Dr. Jaeger’s hand and says sympathetically, “My condolences for your recent loss, doctor.”

“Thank you. It has been difficult but I’m managing to keep my mind busy.”

Dr. Frankenstein sits down and says, “I realize that this is a sudden visit, Miss Garrison, and that it did end your vacation quite abruptly. I should be the one apologizing.”

She also sits down and replies, “No need to apologize. Your father is an inspiration for me so this is an honor.”

He clears his throat and says, “I’ll just get straight to the point. Yersenia pestis.”

Diana raises her eyebrow and tells him, “That is highly secretive information, doctor. I question the method with which you obtained it.”

“I am capable of obtaining any kind of information, Miss Garrison. That is, however, irrelevant. You are aware of Joseph Jaeger’s research and experiments during World War II, correct?”

She places her finger on her chin and replies, “I assure you, doctor, we have taken all of the necessary precautions. Dr. Jaeger has managed to reverse engineer the virus and we are already in the final stages of developing the vaccine.”

He gives her a long stare and says in a low tone, “You’re playing with fire.”

Dr. Jaeger scoffs and replies, “Aren’t you overreacting, doctor? No offense but this has been done countless of times before. I am sure that you understand how the economy works. From manufactured wars to manufactured diseases.”

Dr. Frankenstein strokes his white goatee and takes a moment to contemplate on that sad, but very true, fact. He then nods and tells him, “Yes, Dr. Jaeger. I do understand. Would you accept my request to assist you?”

Diana grins as she nibbles on the tip of her pen. She uses it to push the button next to her office phone and says, “Brenda. Hold my calls.”

Rikki Hillman is sitting in an empty office while drinking coffee and using her tablet to watch the latest news on the capture of the “culprits” responsible for last night’s movie theater explosion. She grins with pride at how the operation is playing out flawlessly. Even their parents are doing an excellent job of sticking to the script. She whispers to herself, “So far, so good.”

Several footsteps are heard outside causing Rikki to look up and see Major General Albert Avery enter the office closely followed by the Director of the CIA, Andrew McMahon. As he closes the door, Rikki’s boss notices her starting to stand up and tells her, “You can remain seated, Agent Hillman.”

Director McMahon sits down behind his desk while the Major General remains standing staring intently at Rikki. The director then says to her rather frankly, “You look like shit. When’s the last time you slept?”

She sits up straight and replies, “I’m good, sir.”

“When we finish here, take the rest of the day off. Understood? I don’t need agents that are half-asleep. Leads to sloppiness.”

“Yes, sir.”

“So, tell me, Agent Hillman. Why the urgent need to speak with us?”

Rikki glances at Major General Avery and then looks at her superior. She replies, “It’s about the boy. I’m requesting permission to adopt him, sir.”

The CIA Director did not expect this from her. He recalls the numerous occasions which she expressed her strong hatred of children and being adamant of not having any of her own. And now she has a sudden change of heart?

After an odd silence, the Major General tells her, “A rather peculiar request, Agent Hillman.”

She nods and says, “It is, yes. The boy is not willing to trust anyone else.”

“And in the short period of time you have been with each other....he trusts you, Agent Hillman?”

Director McMahon cautions her by saying, “Even if we’re able to pull this off, you do realize that it can’t be undone. You’d be stuck with him...for good.”

“Yes....I know, sir.”

Major General Avery is shocked by what he just heard and asks, “You sure that’s a good idea, Andy?”

He looks up at him and replies, “After the hell we put him through, Albert, I think he deserves that much.”

Rikki lowers her and breathes a sigh of relief. Why is she relieved when she should be scared out of her mind? She’s never had children of her own or even babysat for that matter! Yet here she is feeling good about the possibility of adopting Adam. Her superior notices her reaction and says while pointing his pen at her, “Don’t get your hopes up yet, Agent Hillman. I’ll need to make a few calls. For now, go and get some sleep for Christ’s sake.”

Rikki nods and rises to her feet. She gives Major General Avery a quick glance before exiting the office. He does not seem comfortable with the idea of allowing a CIA agent adopt a teenager who will be participating in a witness protection program. Oddly enough, she feels the exact same way.

As Indrid’s ship hovers above the clouds near the StarSun office building, Sajjad stands next to her in the cockpit and asks, “Can you hear what they’re speaking about? You can read minds, correct?”

She is sitting in her usual position with her arms wrapped around her legs. Without looking at him, she replies, “I can, yes. However, I will not out of respect for privacy of the individuals.”

Henry stands next to Sajjad, takes a bite of his apple and adds, “I’m sure the doc’ll fill us in, big guy.”

All of a sudden, Indrid leans forward and says to everyone around her, “Ludwig is requesting teleportation.”

A blinding white light flashes and Dr. Frankenstein appears near the white sofa. Henry quickly arrives and asks, “Well? How did everything go, doc?”

The doctor glances at everyone for a moment and replies, “I’m working for her. We will begin working on the vaccine tomorrow morning. For now, let’s all return to Area 51.”

He feels his phone vibrate and immediately takes it out of his pocket. It’s a text message from Barbara requesting the result of the meeting as well as his ETA. He takes a quick look at Indrid as she pilots the craft. He is worried that his actions have had no effect whatsoever on what may happen in the future. If it did, she would most certainly have informed him of any changes.

Meanwhile, Frank finishes drinking his orange juice and places the empty cup on the tray in front of him. He sighs as he gazes at what remains of his breakfast and says loudly, “You can stop hiding. I know you’re there.”

Phoebe slowly pokes her head through the left side of the doorway and asks in a soft voice, “How did you know I was here, mister?”

He gives her a warm grin and replies, “The military gave me special powers, kid. Do your parents work here?”

She places her finger on her lower lip and takes a moment to think. Would Jerry and Ludwig qualify as her parents? No. That is something reserved exclusively for humans. She lowers her head in shame and her hair changes from purple to blue. This takes Frank completely by surprise and he begins to question his own sanity. Jerry’s hand pats and caresses her head and he soothingly tells her, “Hey. We’re your family, Phoebe.”

His comment results in Phoebe’s hair changing to a bright yellowish color and a huge smile forms on her face. She hugs Jerry’s leg tightly and says joyfully, “My family!”

This makes him chuckle and he then tells her, “Why don’t we go outside and get some fresh air? You can even bring Fluffy along.”

Phoebe gasps with excitement and runs off in search of her favorite companion. Jerry watches her run down the hallway with a certain amount of pride. He turns his head to look at a perplexed Frank and, while walking towards him, says, “I apologize if she disturbed you, Mr. Garrison.”

“What was....? Her hair.”

Jerry extends his hand and, as Frank shakes it, he replies, “I’m Jerry Desmond. It’s an honor, sir. Anyway, her name is Phoebe. She’s the first of her kind. An android with complete self-awareness.”

“Self-awareness? You’re saying that it’s...I mean...she’s...?”

“Alive. Yes. Phoebe can feel both emotional and physical pain.”

Frank takes a moment to fully absorb the information that’s just been given to him. What was once believed to only happen in science fiction movies is now a reality. Incredible. He asks him, “And that other girl? With the two-tone skin?”

“Oh, you mean Barbara Echevarria? No, she’s what you would refer to as a cyborg. Part human and part machine. She’s actually Dr. Frankenstein’s creation.”

Their conversation is abruptly interrupted by Fluffy as he runs inside closely followed by Phoebe. Jerry picks up the puppy and asks her, “What did I tell you about chasing him, Phoebe?”

Her hair is now a reddish color as she replies in frustration while presenting him with a leash, “I know, Jerry. We can both get hurt. It’s just that he won’t let me put on his leash!”

Jerry takes the leash and says to Frank, “I’ll see you around later, Mr. Garrison. Say goodbye to the nice man, Phoebe.”

She waves her hand and shouts, “Buh-bye, mister!”

Frank is fascinated at how her hair color changes from red to yellow. It would seem that her emotions somehow trigger this strange phenomena. He raises his hand and smiles as he waves back at her. They both exit the room and Frank can’t help but reminisce about his daughter when she was an adorable little girl like Phoebe. He rests his head on the pillow and whispers, “Diana.”

At Area 51′s Hanger 18, Barbara observes Indrid’s ship as it hovers just above the ground. A bright flash of light causes her to shield her eyes with her hand and, seconds later, the entire crew is seen standing directly under the craft. She grins at Dr. Frankenstein as he approaches her and asks him, “Did you ask about their health care benefits, doc?”

He stands in front of her and grins in response to her question. He then asks, “Did you get any useful information from Mr. Garrison?”

“No. It’s stuff that we already know. Sorry.”

Dr. Frankenstein pats her shoulder while saying, “Thank you, Barbara. I’ll need to make the necessary preparations for my first day at StarSun. If you’ll excuse me.”

She nods as he walks past her and then looks up at Indrid. She asks, “Indrid?”

Indrid stops walking and gazes at Barbara with those shimmering black eyes. She replies, “Yes? Do you wish to speak with me, Barbara?”

“Yeah. I need a big favor.”

“Does this favor involve Mr. Frank Garrison?”

“Um...yeah.”

Indrid turns her head to look away and closes her eyes while saying stoically, “I am sorry but I cannot read his mind for you, Barbara.”

This results in Barbara becoming so angered that she clenches her fists tightly. Indrid senses this and says sympathetically, “You are angry at me. I understand. If you want to hit me, you can. I will not retaliate.”

Barbara notices something about her that she hasn’t before. Indrid’s heart beat is beating faster than normal and her perspiration is slowly rising. Barbara says in a low voice, “You’re afraid.”

This makes Indrid open her eyes and turns her head to look directly at Barbara. She asks, “What did you just say?”

“It all makes sense now. How you never participated in any of the missions. Always keeping your distance. You’re scared and I’m betting Dr. Frankenstein knows this.”

Indrid opens her mouth but decides to not respond to her accusation. Barbara sighs with frustration and begins walking away. Indrid then shouts loudly, “Wait!”

Barbara stops walking and asks without turning around, “Yeah?”

“You’re right, Barbara. I am afraid. It is a long story that I will share with you later. For now, let’s make a compromise.”

Barbara turns around, folds her arms and says, “I’m listening.”

“Make another attempt at questioning Mr. Garrison. If you feel that he is indeed withholding important information.....I’ll read his mind.”

“Okay. Deal. I appreciate it, Indrid. Thanks.”

Phoebe is outside of Area 51 playing fetch with Fluffy. Jerry admires the way she tosses the ball and giggles when the puppy runs after it. He sees David next to him and asks, “Isn’t she amazing? To think that, a few months ago, she was reminding me of my dental appointment.”

A large stone makes her trip and fall. She sits up and says laughingly, “Ow!”

Jerry shouts at her, “Watch your step, Phoebe! You can get hurt if you’re not careful!”

David chuckles and asks, “Don’t you mean damaged?”

Phoebe’s hair changes to pink while observing the figure of a man approaching from a distance. She looks at Jerry while pointing at him and yells, “There’s a man over there, Jerry!”

He stares in curiosity and says, “Strange. No one’s ever gotten this close.”

David uses his heightened sense of smell and discovers that the man does not have a scent at all! How is this possible? Unless it’s not a real human. He tells Jerry, “Get Phoebe and go inside, Jerry.”

He nods in agreement and calls out, “Phoebe! It’s time to go inside.”

Phoebe becomes extremely sad and her hair fades to blue. She yells, “Nooooo! Just a little longer...Please!”

“Now!”

Phoebe sticks out her tongue at him and, while picking up Fluffy, says, “Fine. We’ll play inside.”

While she begins running, David growls and his eyes begin to glow a bright yellow as he continues observing the odorless man. Jerry picks up Phoebe and says, “I knew you could do it.”

At this point, while Jerry is running towards the entrance of Area 51, Phoebe raises her head to gaze at David in curiosity. Upon witnessing his frightening transformation into a werewolf, she hides her face in Jerry’s chest and whispers in his ear, “Are we there yet, Jerry? I’m scared.”

They enter the facility and Jerry immediately tells Phoebe while lowering her to the floor, “We’re safe now. Just stay close to me, okay?”

He then looks at the security personnel and shouts, “We have an intruder! Alert Dr. Frankenstein immediately!”

Indrid is walking beside Barbara when she suddenly hears Dr. Frankenstein’s voice saying, “Indrid. Are you with Barbara?”

“Yes, Ludwig.”

Indrid stops walking and gives Barbara a confused expression. Barbara turns around and sees the look on her teammate’s face. She asks, “What is it, Indrid?”

All of a sudden, a black mist begins to rise from Indrid’s feet and consume her body. She replies, “No time to explain. We need to go.”

Near the entrance of Area 51, David is fully transformed and is on all fours as he cautiously approaches the now motionless man. It is at this point that he realizes that this man reminds him of Phoebe, in a way. Is he an android like her? That would explain how no one was able to detect his presence when he was in close proximity of the highly advanced military installation.

David decides to make his move and lunges at his target with lightening quick speed. Normally, this maneuver would catch any opponent by surprise but the man easily dodges it and counter-attacks with a swift blow to his stomach. This results in David getting the wind completely knocked out of him and gets sent flying several feet away. The tall man’s eyes can now be seen. David gazes at the inhuman stare and his previous assumptions about this thing has been confirmed. It is highly similar to Phoebe with the exception of her self-awareness. It’s just a robot executing the commands being given to it.

Just as David prepares himself for another attack, he notices the shadow of a large, winged creature increasing in size by every passing second. He looks up to see Indrid Cold in her moth-like form flapping her wings as she descends.

The android reaches into his jacket, pulls out a gun and aims upward at Indrid. Suddenly, Barbara’s hand appears and grabs his wrist. She says, “No you don’t.” and pulls with such a force that it causes him to miss his target.

David shouts in a guttural manner, “Hold on to him, Barbara!”

She looks at him as he gets up and rushes toward them. At this point, she tightens her grip and, within seconds, David tackles the android to the ground. Barbara then realizes that she is holding the now detached arm of the robotic assassin. It’s been completely ripped off from the shoulder socket!

David sinks his sharp teeth into the android’s head and, with a swift movement, tears it off of his body. Barbara stands inches away and looks down at the android as he twitches. Indrid reverts back to her normal form and lands on her feet. She says to Barbara, “Hmmm. That was easy.”

Barbara tosses the limb aside and replies, “Yeah. Too easy?”

Indrid hears Dr. Frankenstein ask, “What is the status, Indrid?”

She replies by thinking, “The threat has been neutralized, Ludwig.”

“Already? Hmmm.”

Barbara kneels down and observes with curiosity at the quivering body on the ground. For some odd reason, she replaces herself actually feeling sorry for this mutilated hunk of advanced machinery. Suddenly, she hears several clicks emanate from its chest and watches it stop twitching and remain still. Could it be what she thinks it is? David, while still in his werewolf form, asks everyone, “Did all of you hear what I just heard?”

Barbara nods in response and proceeds to rip the shirt off of the android. She is shocked to see something glowing a reddish color inside of its chest. Indrid says in a loud tone, “It’s going to self-destruct!”

Barbara quickly lifts up the body and tells them, “You guys head on back! I’m gonna give him a toss and be right behind you!”

Indrid and David look at each other in a state of bewilderment. Barbara yells, “Go!”

David growls and runs away as fast as his legs can carry him. Indrid’s body once again becomes by the black mist and she transforms into her moth form. Barbara then carries the android on her back and proceeds to distance herself from Area 51. In a matter of two minutes, she is already fifty miles away and screams as she throws the ticking bomb up to the sky with all of her might. Her cybernetic analyzes the trajectory and curses at herself for not being able to throw it any farther. Barbara becomes shocked to see Indrid flying toward the android and shouts, “Indrid! What the hell are you doing?”

She hears Indrid reply, “What must be done. The explosive contained within it is comprised of plasma energy. It must not detonate here.”

Plasma energy? So whoever did this had the intention of wiping Area 51 completely off of the map. This is an obvious assassination attempt on the entire team. Possibly by the same individuals responsible for hacking David’s panic room access panel. Indrid reverts back to her human-like form and dives directly at the android. She extends her arm and opens her hand. A minute later, she grabs onto the shirt and throws the ticking body upward. All the while, Barbara watches and whispers, “Come on. Get away from there.”

As she free falls, Indrid looks at the android disappear into the clouds above. A bright flash followed by a thunderous explosion startles her and she gasps in response of the resulting detonation wave. The tremendous force will undoubtedly tear her apart. She needs to distance herself from it...and fast. Barbara is staring in awe at the sheer size of the blast in the sky. The intensity of the brightness rivals that of the Sun itself! It’s almost as if a star is falling from the sky. She shields her eyes with her hand and yells, “Indrid!”

Barbara attempts to scan the sky in hopes of spotting her. To her dismay, she is nowhere to be seen. She then gets blown back by a very strong force. This must be from the explosion. It feels as strong as the winds from a class two hurricane! If Indrid did not escape in time, she is dead. Without question.

Meanwhile, inside of the main headquarters of Area 51, Dr. Frankenstein is stroking his goatee while in deep thought. He has been calling out to Indrid for the last five minutes and has not yet gotten a response from her. He hears someone bark out, “Here it comes! Brace yourselves!”

The entire building begins to shake violently and the lights flicker randomly. Phoebe’s hair turns white and she grabs onto Jerry’s shirt tightly. She then says, “I’m scared, Jerry.”

He places his hand on her head and says comfortingly, “Don’t worry. It’ll be over soon.”

In Frank’s hospital room, the staff look at each other nervously while Frank remains stoic as he looks up at the flickering lights. This is not indicative of an earthquake, he thinks to himself. No. Judging by the way the whole room is shaking violently, this must have been a significantly powerful explosion which occurred several miles away.

A couple of minutes pass and the trembling finally subsides. Dr. Frankenstein remains completely still while wondering if Indrid is still alive. An explosion of that magnitude can destroy anything within its path. From his ear bud, he hears Barbara shouting, “Doctor! Is everyone okay?”

“Yes. We are fine, Barbara. Is Indrid with you? I am unable to contact her.”

After pausing for a moment, she replies, “No. Last time I saw her, she was pretty near the explosion.”

“I see. Do me a favor, will you? Can you look for her?”

Barbara does not know how to reply to the doctor’s request. He should be able to figure out Indrid’s fate for himself given the facts she just provided. Perhaps he is simply refusing to accept the grim possibility that she may be dead. She finally replies, “Uh, yeah. Okay.”

“Thank you, Barbara. Keep me posted.”

The call disconnects and she is left wondering where exactly to begin searching for Indrid. For all she knows, the explosion may very well have disintegrated her body within seconds. She looks up at the sky and whispers, “Damn it, girl. You better be alive.”