Chapter Two: Blackmail

Everything felt like it happened so fast. Not long after his mother told him what happened to his father, they packed there things and left the house. Noah wouldn't know until a few years later that those people were working for the government and that the project that his father was working on was also some kind of government funded project. One that went horribly wrong.

Things didn't become quiet afterward though. The news continued to tell stories about animals and plants becoming monstrous and attacking people. Then came the breaking story not even two months after the explosion happened; a person transformed into some kind of werewolf like monster. The police were called in to restrain it - about two were killed and five were injured. More started changing into them and the police were authorized to use deadly force if they engaged one.

It worked some times, most of the time though, it didn't.

Next thing people knew, the military were patrolling the areas. Doctors and environmental scientists came to people's homes to do tests, either taking blood samples from people and animals, or taking dirt from the yards or flowers from gardens. The results made the news only a few weeks later; tiny microbes were found inside the bodies of everyone... and everything. More tests concluded that the little microbes were mechanical, and also the causes the mutations. Then the worse news hit, there was no way to stop it.

Trying to move on with life became difficult for everyone. Noah saw the world change slowly as policies were implemented to try and prevent casualties in the event of a mutation. He saw one of his teachers be replaced by another when the man had been almost ripped apart when his dog turned into a monster. Everyday Noah would leave his house, got to school, and come home wondering if he was going to wake up and still be himself, or if his mom was going to turn into one of those things. Or if the small ants in his yard were going to suddenly become 20 feet tall and rip apart his house.

Then Providence appeared, spreading word about its goals and its policy ' contain and kill' something that Noah saw everyone look at and then shrug off. At least until the policy was changed to add one other option, an option – a possibility – that no one ever expected to hear since the outbreak occurred five years ago.

The possibility of a cure.

"Is Providence really working on a cure to this epidemic?" The newscaster asked a slim looking man in a green colored suit. They were watching the news in there science class because no only had it just been announced, but the information was the biggest news since the epidemic started in the first place. Everyone was watching the announcement waiting to hear what the man in the suit would say.

"Yes." Was the answer. Everyone waited, even the newscaster, for the man to elaborate. When he didn't the newscaster looked to the camera and then back to him.

"Uh, would you care to elaborate on this cure?"

"That is currently classified information." The man said and went up and pushed his hand into the camera. "No more questions." The screen went black leaving everyone in the classroom speechless, including their science teacher who also looked disappointed, apparently having expected something more than that.

"Well, I suppose since we're talking about EVOs, perhaps we can use this class to discuss Nanites and their effects." He said and the class grumbled. Ever since the incident, Nanites were added as part of the school curriculum and the information ranged between fascinating and boring depending on how much information they had and the teacher teaching the subject. Last year they happened to have a teacher who had apparently been involved in the project during its early phase, this year they had someone who had no idea what they were talking about.

Noah wished he could talk to that teacher, but not only had he been too nervous to, he probably wasn't allowed to anyway. Saying anything about his past or who he was would probably get him and his mother moved to another location. That was the last thing that he wanted to happen, after being in New York for almost three years he didn't want to have to move again. He learned his lesson to keep his mouth shut and he wasn't going to open it again.

He took a glance at the cars going by the school before turning back to his work. What the teacher was talking about didn't make any sense. Nano technology, Nanites… nothing about it made sense. The only thing's he got were what Providence told the public, that the Nanites in everyone's bodies were dormant until they somehow became active, altering a person's DNA turning them into a monster – an EVO as they called them. The little details about their mechanics, that went over his head. All he wanted to know was what Providence was going to do to win this war. If the cure they were working on was going to work.

He was grateful when the final bell rang. He put his science book in his backpack and got up only to be knocked over as someone bumped into him. "Hey!" The person only laughed. Noah grumbled quietly to himself as he watched the person leave the classroom; probably someone on the football team. Only thing keeping the guy from picking on him was probably the fact he was on the basketball team. One step lower than a jock – a popular kid – yet high enough on the social totem pole to avoid being pushed around.

For Noah it was the only thing keeping him from being another bully's target. He used to love basketball, now he only played because doing it was so ingrained into his system that doing not playing made him anxious in the winter. Playing it didn't give him that rush or that joy that it gave him when he was younger. Now, he felt like a lump that wasn't going anywhere, like most of the life had been sucked out of him after his father passed away. His mom kept telling him to make some friends, but he always got nervous when he tried. He had a few acquaintances on the basketball team, but that was about it.

"Hey Noah." The blonde stopped in his steps as he heard a very familiar voice. He looked over to see Clair standing against the wall. Clair, one of the few people that made an open effort to talk to him, maybe that was why he had developed a crush on her last year. Sadly she was going out with someone that was completely out of his league. They were even better than a football player.

They were a college student. Only Clair was good looking and smart enough to be able to get the attention of a college student. Well, her friend Annie probably could as well, but considering what happened to every guy that she dated…

"Hey, what are you doing here?" He asked and wanted to slap himself in the head. His voice became high pitched and strained, again. No girl liked a guy that sounded like he had just sucked a balloon full of helium.

"Just waiting for Annie to finish up." She said looking over to the lockers and then back to him. "You know, you should hang out with us sometime. Go to the snack shack, hang out for a bit, all that." He was so tempted to say yes, he wanted to hang out with Clair. He really, really, did. "Roger's going to be coming with us."

Roger… Roger was the college student. "Uh, thanks but I need to get home." No way was he going to make a fool of himself in front of a college student. "Another time maybe." Preferably when Roger wasn't around. He did not say that last part out loud and was grateful, because Clair gave him a smile that could have made any guy melt into a puddle on the floor.

"Alright, another time." She said and looked over to see Annie slam her locker door shut and then kick it with her foot. "I'll see you later."

Noah watched her leave before going in the other direction with a huge grin on his face. That grin then faded when he remembered who she was going to see and then he hit himself in the head. A college student. No one could compete with that! Especially him.

It was spring. Snow was finally off the ground and it was warm enough for Noah to walk around in his green air-force inspired jacket instead of the bulky winter coat his mom got him. Basketball season had come to a close and the blonde played with the second place silver medal that had been given to him and his teammates. It had been the best they had done in awhile. His coach had berated the team because second place more or less meant 'first loser', but Noah didn't really care, he actually felt good about the end of the season. He couldn't wait to show it to his mom and then hang it up in his room.

"Mom, I'm home!" He said opening the door. His grin faded when he saw his mother sitting on the couch head in her hands looking as though she was going to cry. "Mom?" He repeated and she looked up at him. She wasn't crying, but she looked like she wanted to. "Mom, what's wrong?"

"It's…" She started before getting up and grabbing a piece of paper off the counter. "Someone called wanting to speak to you. Said something about a job."

Noah frowned and looked at the number. The number looked legit and a job offer was something that was hard to come by thanks to the current economy. So why would his mom look so upset? "Is there something I should know mom?" He asked. His mother looked away for a moment before sighing and turning back to him.

"He knows who we are."

Noah's eyes widened. The last time he heard that it meant leaving. "What?" He said, "But how, I thought-"

"He says he'll keep quiet if you work for him." His mom cut in looking away from him, a disturbed look in her eyes. "But, I don't know what he wants. I asked he wouldn't say." She said sighing hand to her forehead, frustrated, and to Noah she looked incredibly tense. "I honestly wanted to say no and contact WP, but… well you're almost an adult, you should decide if you want to call him back or not."

Noah stayed quiet looking at the number. He climbed up to his room and stared at the ceiling trying to make sense of what was going on. Someone found out about his and his mom's relationship with Gabriel Rylander, and he was willing to keep quiet if Noah worked for him. He grumbled and sat up looking at the number. What was he supposed to do? What would his dad do in this situation?

He had no idea. His father was dead; and even if he wasn't, he never would be in this situation. And he was the reason that they were in this mess anyway. "No it's not his fault." Noah found himself muttering to himself. The situation they were in was not his father's fault. He would never have known this would happen. He couldn't blame him for not knowing what his research would cause.

Noah rubbed his hair and stared at the number for a little while longer before reaching for his cell phone. He'd call it; the worst thing that could happen was that it was some prank at his school. …On second thought it probably could be worse than that, but he wasn't going to admit it. He finished dialing the number and waited. His heart pounded in his chest as her heard the first and second ring tones pass.

On the third a person answered it. "Hello?"

It was a man with a low voice. Noah took a small breath to keep himself calm. "Uh hi I'm-"

"Is this Gabriel Rylander's son?" Noah froze when he heard that and nodded. Then he remembered that he was talking on the phone and this man would not see him.

"Y-yes." He stuttered, "My names Noah."

"Noah. How appropriate." The man said and Noah stayed quiet knowing that he would be better off staying quiet in this situation than saying anything. "Noah tell me, do you want to win this war you're father helped start?"

The question struck a nerve. What was going on was not his father's fault. Yes he worked on the project, but he couldn't have seen this happen. It was not his fault. It's not… "Yes. I do." It was not his father's fault.

"Good." The man said, "I'm very glad to hear you say that. It tells me you know what's right." Noah winced at the man's words; he was starting to think that calling him back was a bad idea. "Listen I have a very important job for you, and if you accept it, not only will be a valuable asset in this war, but all information about your family history will vanish from Providence's database. You'll be able to live your life as normal as possible, and the fact that you're related to Gabriel Rylander will be swept under the carpet as if the information never existed."

Noah could feel his hands shaking. This was blackmail and he was so tempted to tell this man to look somewhere else that he almost said it. Almost. He wished he had more of a spine. "What do you want me to do?" He asked and he was certain the man was smiling on the other end.

"It's simple really. You probably already know this, but Providence has managed to find a cure in the form of an EVO. It was all over the news today."

"I was at school, I didn't see the news." Noah said.

"Ah, my apologize." The man didn't sound sorry. He almost sounded like he was mocking him. "The point is, while this EVO is the key to winning this war, he's unruly, uncontrollable. I need you to - "

"I can't fight it if that's what you're suggesting." He said and his bit his lip as a silence broke their conversation. He should have kept his mouth shut. He snapped his eyes shut waiting for the phone to click telling him that the other man hung up.

"No." The man said, not ending the call, but sounding very annoyed that he had been interrupted. "What I want is for you to 'befriend' the EVO. Keep an eye on him, talk to him, make him trust you and make sure he doesn't get too far out of line."

Befriend it? That sounded worse than fighting it. All the EVOs that Noah had seen were wild monsters that tried to kill people. How was he supposed to befriend one of them? He asked that to the man he was speaking to and the only thing he said was. "I'll leave that up to you. I'm sending information on the EVO as well as his location to your cell phone. I would suggest befriending him as soon as possible; there will be consequences if he gets too far out of line."

With that last sentence the line clicked and Noah found himself listening to the sound to dead air before ending the call on his end. He took a deep breath and flopped over onto his pillow. "What have I just gotten myself into?" He asked himself then felt his cell phone vibrate. He looked at it and noticed he had just received three messages. That guy wasn't kidding when he said he was sending information. He opened the first one, a photo and stared at it eyes wide. The image had not been what he had expected when he heard he would need to befriend an EVO.

"Is this guy serious?" It had to be some kind of joke, as he looked at the picture he was starting to question if this person was of sane mind.

He looked at the other bit of information, his location. He stared at the address, he knew where it was, but would it be worth going to? For all he knew this was some elaborate wild goose chase… no, no it wasn't. Even if it was an elaborate prank the person would never have known who his dad was unless they had government ties.

There was no way this was real. He told himself that, but he grabbed his jacket anyway.

It was real. Or better yet he was real.

Noah watched from a distance as the EVO conversed with a few other people, people that Noah could already tell would be trouble. The EVO didn't seem to notice anything wrong as he used his powers on a nearby soda machine to get the guys drinks.

The EVO looked almost exactly like the image that he had been sent –short hair, red and orange jacket, and a skin tone that made Noah guess he was Hispanic. The only differences between the image and what he was seeing now were the goggles on his head, and his jacket looking a bit smaller. The image was outdated, how outdated he didn't know, but that didn't matter. He pocketed his cell phone and started down to where they were. How we was going to get this EVO away from those guys he had no idea, but he had to think of something fast.

"Dude, we totally have to take him to the arcade with us!" He heard one of them say and another saying that they would never have to pay for anything ever again.

That was his cue, when he saw the EVO start to follow him he made himself known. "Those guys could care less about being friends you know." He said. The EVO stopped in his tracks and looked at him.

"What's wrong with that?" He asked and Noah couldn't help but raise an eyebrow at the question. It didn't sound like someone who didn't care whether he was popular or not, but as someone who didn't seem to understand the difference between being a 'friend' and being 'used.'

"Hey EVO kid! Let's go! Cha-ching!" One of the kids said and Noah leaned against the machine shaking his head. The EVO looked at them, then him, then back to them.

"Let's just hang here…" He said, "And I'm tired of the whole 'machine' thing."

It had not been an answer they wanted and Noah knew it. "Oh, guess we're done then. Freak!" Noah watched the EVO's reaction and couldn't help but feel sorry for him. He looked confused and hurt as the other teenagers laughed at him and took off. That's when Noah saw the monkey, noticed it could talk, and cringed at a comment that it said, and that the EVO approved.

"You have a talking monkey…" Noah said before he could stop himself. On one hand though it proved to be a decent ice breaker, the EVO kid looked back at him.

"Chimpanzee technically." He said and held up his hand. Noah gave a dull nod drawing a blank. He wished he thought this through more. His eyes fell on the soda machine. "You want a soda?"

The question brought his attention back to the EVO kid who was holding out his hand the blue electrified streaks crawling up it. He sounded uneasy and Noah had a feeling that just saying yes would probably not help his job. He needed to befriend this EVO and he would have better luck doing that if he made the first move.

"It's on me." Noah said taking out some money. "I'm Noah."

The EVO stared at him before grinning dropping his hand, "I'm Rex…and thanks." The uneasiness disappeared and once the two got there drinks Noah led Rex down the walkway engaging the EVO in conversation. Rex responded, speaking little at first, and then breaking into full conversation, leaving Noah as the one to sit back and listen.

And as Rex continued to talk Noah found himself realizing that the EVO was almost exactly like any other teenager.

Author's Note:

So I got bored and decide to look up meanings behind names and stuff like that… apparently Noah can also be a girl's name, not just a guys. Yeah. When I was coming up with this story a friend of mine and I were discussing how on some level we're sure Noah has a self-confidence problem, like maybe some kind of inferiority complex. We were also wondering why he was with Rex in the episode Badlands when he should have been somewhere like, I don't know, school. Eh maybe that episode was on a Saturday.

I can honestly say I don't care much how this chapter came out, but I needed to get Noah and Rex met up as there interaction is pretty important.