Anomaly

Episode 28- Truth


He wasn't seeing any real benefit to coming to this place. Corvin had heard from a lot of people's memories that people would often come to churches to help "find themselves" after going through a traumatic ordeal. Well, there was only two churches in the Yellow Zone- and apparently one of them had been attacked by Blackwatch for some reason. Why they would send whole gunships and tanks to a lowly church, he had no idea, but apparently they had all been decimated by the usual suspect, i.e. a very angry bald man. So that was out.

This place, a lowly church out in the backstreets he'd come across, didn't really fare much better. It was old, abandoned, dusty, mildew-y, and the only light source was the sunlight shining through the dilapidated windows. He shouldn't have come here in the first place. Part of him hoped that the emptiness inside of him formed from Hawke's passing would be fixed if he came here, that he would find something here to help him. If anything, the dreary atmosphere made him feel worse.

He heard the large doors leading inside of the church open, the abused hinges letting out a large and drawn-out squeak as they opened. He released a tired breath and turned around. It was either his friends or some Blackwatch troopers that somehow hunted him down here. He didn't feel like seeing either, but at least if it was the latter it would provide some catharsis.

Let it be known that it was neither.

"I expected to find you in a lot of places, Corvin, but this really wasn't one of 'em." His voice was as chilling as always, and his saunter equally suave. The large doors closed behind Alex with a large bang, but he didn't react in the slightest. His gaze was solely focused on Corvin's tired eyes. "Didn't take you for the religious type."

"I'm quite the opposite." Religious. Him. That was a laugh. Gods were half the reason his life was such a mess, but that was back in the other world. Ogre's description on how every universe operated under different rules and rulers held true, because as far as Corvin could see this was one of the worlds that didn't have any deities ruling over it. Just one run by pure science and evolution.

"Oh, really?" Alex stopped walking once he reached the front aisle of seats, which was where Corvin was sitting. "So I take it you're not a believer?"

"That's a really complicated answer, Alex." Seeing as he had fought an actual god, he kind of had to be one. But again, these were events that took place in a different universe that operated under a completely different rule-set from this one. He figured the humans here were all on their own.

"Can't be that complicated," Alex said. "It's a yes or no question."

Corvin rolled his eyes. "Fine. There aren't any gods in this world," he said. "Happy?"

"Usually there's an 'I believe' behind the answer."

"It's not a statement of opinion. It's pure fact. There aren't any here."

With a small smirk, Alex nodded. "Ah, I see. I guess that's a bit of a relief. Thought you really were one of those bible-thumping idiots for a second there." He continued to walk forwards, stepping up onto a raised platform at the front of the church, where the preacher's pew was. He ran a hand along it. "It's really amazing how people will put so much faith into something they can't perceive, nor have any proof of its existence. And so many different ones, too. But did you know that if you cross-reference the most diverse religions you can find, you'll actually see a lot of similarities, primarily in how they start?" He looked back at Corvin. "Do you think humans naturally create the concept of religion? That it's second-nature for them?"

Corvin slouched down in his seat, cupping his chin with a hand. "People often look for things to put their hope in," he said. "There's a lot of receptacles for hopes. People, places, possessions. Things they care about. But all of these things are tangible, which means they can be taken away. Destroyed. Religion is much less destructible than any of these things because it's an concept. An idea. People will put their hopes and faith into religion because its easy, because its the simplest and most convenient option. And it gives them assurance that everything in life will turn out okay as long as they adhere to the moral guidelines connected to whatever religion they follow." He paused. "At least, that's what I believe the reason for people doing this is. As I've said, I've never been the religious type, so I couldn't say from experience."

"I see. You think it gives the humans hope." Alex turned from Corvin to the very back wall of the church, where a very large stone cross twice as big as Alex hung. On that cross was a crucified man whose stony eyes stared back at them. He began to walk towards it. "That's all well and good, but what happens when religions clash with one another? People will feel threatened by opposing religions, since it contradicts their own beliefs and makes them question them. Or maybe they'll turn antagonistic against people who don't follow their religion and ways, just because that's what that religion says to do. Then the wars start. The Crusades. The Spanish Inquisition. Conflicts in the Middle East. Take your pick. There's hundreds of other examples of people killing one another over something that doesn't even exist." He stopped walking once he was right in front of the cross. "Personally, I would do away with all of it. Get rid of every single religion. Do that, and there wouldn't be anything left to fight over in that regard. How many issues do you think would be solved? How many deaths do you think would be avoided?"

"How many people would you have to cull to accomplish this?" Corvin countered. "People don't easily forget, nor would they sit back and let something like this happened. Wars over religion happen because of this very thing." He looked to the side. "Besides, there's a cultural aspect you're neglecting. Many cultures developed over thousands of years would be lost along will all religion. History. You'd get rid of all that."

Alex extended his hand and grabbed the cross. "It would be a shame, true. But the continuation of the species is preferable over some lost history." The wall behind the cross cracked as Alex pulled it free from the nails holding it all together. The cross and the stone main nailed to it smashed against the flooring, pieces scattering everywhere as a small dust cloud was thrown up from the impact. "Don't you agree?"

"... I've seen first hand how violent zealots can get when push comes to shove." As he said this, Corvin unconsciously rubbed his arm. "It can give people hope, but it can also be poisonous. Maybe you're right. Maybe the world is just better off without it." He raised his head up. "But you didn't come here to argue religion, did you?"

"No, I didn't. But we can get to that later." In a blur of movement Alex was sitting next to Corvin, with one leg slung over the other and both elbows resting against the backboard of the long seat they were both in. "Why are you sitting here all alone? You look pathetic as fuck."

"Hawke died."

"... Oh." A look of understanding came over Alex's face. "The others okay?"

"Robin isn't. Jay and Washi... well, they're surviving." Robin hadn't said a single word in over a day. She'd just been laying on the couch he'd seen her waiting in staring up at the ceiling. "I thought coming here would give me an answer to feeling better and helping the others."

"Well there's you're problem, Corvin. Unless your answer involves a lot of dust, you're not going to find anything in this dump." He gestured his hand out to the entire interior of the church. "Look, those kids look up to you. I've seen it. I get you're friend just died, and they all are feeling it, too. But moping around here isn't going to fix anything." Alex removed his elbows from their position and leaned forwards. "When you get a chance, just get everybody together. Talk, laugh, do whatever it is you people do with each other, because this shit right here? It's detrimental. Try and see it from their perspective: if you're acting so down like this, they'll follow suit since they follow you. So if you cheer yourself up by being with them, they'll cheer up. Especially Robin." He briefly glanced away. "Losing a brother can mess a sister up."

Corvin's eyes widened. Was it that simple? It made sense in hindsight, and now that he thought about it, Alex was right. It wasn't fair to his remaining friends to see him like this. And he always felt the best when he was with them, not being alone. So why was he here away from what was likely the simplest and easiest solution?

"Huh." Corvin blinked and leaned his head upwards. "I'll bring us all together, try and bring things back to normal. To be honest, we haven't talked as a group at all since his death. It would do us some good. Thanks for the advice." His head rolled to the side until he was looking straight at Alex. "I'm glad we got that all out of the way. So now that my head is a bit clearer, I wanted to ask you something?"

"Yeah?"

"Why did you lie to me?"

A moment passed. "What?"

"You're the reason the Second Outbreak began. You started it. So why did you lie to me when you said it was all Gentek's fault?"

There was a brief moment in which Alex seemed to gawk at Corvin in genuine shock. Then he smiled, let out a low chuckle, and ran a hand down his face while shaking his head. "Ah. So did you snoop around, or was I really just that transparent?"

"You gave away a lot of verbal cues," Corvin answered. "I figured it out after our second talk."

"Wow. I'm honestly kind of disappointed in myself." He let out a sigh and leaned back in the seat. "Guess I'm slipping. Gonna have to fix that. But what I'm really shocked over is the fact that we're still sitting here having a rational conversation." He removed his hand from his face and affixed Corvin with an icy glare. "I'm shocked, actually. Most people would have reacted poorly. Then again, you always seem to defy my expectations on how a typical person would react."

Corvin stared back into Alex's eyes. "Blackwatch and Gentek killed my friend. Not you," he said. "Besides, reacting poorly wouldn't have been advantageous on my part. I'm very aware that you can kill me very easily, so a violent reaction wouldn't have ended well. And we've talked enough that you don't seem like a malicious person who would do something like this for no good reason." It just didn't fit in his eyes. He'd known him briefly, but Corvin had come to expect that Alex didn't do things for no reason. Those eyes of his were as calculating as they were cold. So there had to be some reason why he would do this. Why he would plunge an entire city into darkness and draw Gentek and Blackwatch to New York. He just didn't know what that reason was. "So why did you do it? Why did you start all of this? Was it for revenge on Gentek and Blackwatch for what they did in the First Outbreak? Or did you start that one, too?"

"... In my defense, that one was unintentional." Corvin had to roll his eyes at that one. "But they were doing terrible things, even before that outbreak started. There was a woman, and I'm stretching the definition of what that is when I'm describing her here, they were experimenting on. Her past and significance is all kinds of sordid, but that's not what's important. What's important is that I was really lost back then, and I thought helping her escape those lunatics would help us out in the long run." He looked off to the side. "How was I supposed to know she was even crazier than them? I may have released her, but she was the one who began that outbreak. Blackwatch and Gentek were... well, they were doing pretty much the same thing they are now. I spent that entire outbreak trying to fix the mess I created while figuring out what I was and doing by best to stop Blackwatch and Gentek. I succeeded in two out of three. I consumed the woman who started it all and found the answers I was looking for, but those two groups got off scott-free, minus the body count I created. And you've seen what they've been doing since."

"So the first time was an accident, but this one was intentional," Corvin surmised. "Was I right in assuming you wanted to start all of this and lure those two groups in for revenge?"

"Revenge?" Alex mused. "No, nothing like that. Blackwatch and Gentek are more of a means to an end concerning my plan. I couldn't care less about what happens to them afterwards, because once my plan is complete that all will be rendered irrelevant."

Corvin tilted his head. "What is that supposed to mean? Your plan?" His eyes narrowed. "I understand you started all of this just to draw them in and use them, but what is your end goal, Alex? Why do you need them so bad?" Corvin's face only became more confused as he continued to speak. "What is it that you want badly enough to do any of this?"

The smile on Alex's face turned into a frown as his visage became contemplative. He looked up to the cracked ceiling of the church in thought, releasing a deep sigh. "Remember when I asked you what your opinion on humanity was?" Corvin nodded in response. "Before I answer your question, Corvin, I need to you to answer mine. What do you think of humans?"

"... I've been in this city for over a year now, Alex. I've met many, many people in that time. Of them, I only ever cared about five, because they were the only people out of the millions here that cared about me and gave me a home. Now two of them are dead. And everybody else either never cared about me or want me dead." He shook his head. "It was the exact same before all this, when I was... let's say in a different place. There were many people, but I only cared about a few because they cared about me. Everybody else was rude, belligerent, violent... there wasn't much of a difference between the people here and there." There had been so many groups of people that had gave him a low opinion based on their actions. The group of delinquents that had tried to mug him after he had lost everything for the first time and had stumbled into town looking for help. Templar. Those guards that had attacked him despite the fact he had been acting in self defense. Those crazed basitins. Gods playing with his life like he was some doll. His father experimenting on and killing people, who then tried to turn Corvin into a doll. Blackwatch. Gentek. That one soldier that had kicked him in the face for bumping into him. People that he had always walked by during his stay at the clinic that never gave him the time of day. Humans who had stood by watching keidran be oppressed by slavery and partook in it. People who ignored him being hurt by the previously mentioned face kicking. Everywhere he went, there was people spreading suffering.

And what of the positives? He had groups of friends who were the exact opposite of all these people. That was it. That was the only good he had ever seen. They were the only beads of light he saw in what were otherwise very, very dark worlds. It didn't even come close to outweighing all the negative aspects of people he'd seen. They'd only given him a reason to live.

"I honestly hate them," Corvin stated. "All they've ever done is hurt me. The few friends I've ever made in life are the only exceptions I've encountered."

"... You shouldn't hate humans just for what they are," Alex said. "Otherwise you'd be no better than the people who are trying to kill us just because of what we are."

He made Corvin's eyes widened in surprise with that statement. "You don't hate them?"

"No. I pity them." His gaze didn't move an inch from the ceiling. "I was like you once, you know. I had a really low opinion of humans after the First Outbreak due to everything I had seen. So I left New York. For years I just... wandered. Went around the world. Did some sight-seeing. Collected as much experience as I could about different cultures and humans. I knew I couldn't just rely on what books, website articles, or even stolen memories could give me. I wanted to collect information that was as un-biased as possible, you see. And I saw some... disappointing things, Corvin. I saw a town oppressed by drug dealers and gun runners that, even after I personally liberated them, devolved back into a den of selfishness where everybody only looked after themselves. I saw an old man dead in a chair for weeks because, as far as I could tell, nobody either knew him or nobody could be bothered to care because checking up on an old man would be too much work. I've seen underdeveloped countries starving. I've seen developed countries fattened with gluttony. I saw the past of a man I thought I had known to be a genuinely good person, only to find out he was one of the worst kinds of people imaginable. I experienced a woman I thought I had trusted shoot me in the face for money." He waved his hand around a bit. "There was some good things here and there, sure. A show of kindness here, a good Samaritan there. They were nice, but it just didn't make up for everything else I saw. I didn't." He turned his head to Corvin. "Eventually, I discovered the Truth. And that Truth is why I'm doing all of this."

Corvin stood still. He'd seen the same things Corvin had, to some capacity. "What was the Truth?" he whispered. "I need to know, Alex. Please."

He simply nodded. "You ever wonder why humans are the only sapient species on the whole planet? Why every other creature on Earth is just so base in mental capacity? What was so different from them compared to everything else? It was only one thing, Corvin. One little difference that ancient primates had that nothing else did. One little question subconsciously programmed into their brains from millions of years of evolution, that they and only they alone can comprehend." He raised his index finger to emphasize that point. "'What's in it for me?' That's the difference between humans and everything else."

Corvin blinked. That was it? "I don't understand," he admitted.

"It's selfishness, Corvin. The root of all human nature is selfishness. That's why they're like this. That's why they'll never change, no matter how far society gets or how advanced science becomes or how brighter and shinier the prospect for the future becomes." He opened his left hand. "People will hurt others for their own gain. Become gluttonous to satisfy themselves. Lie, cheat, steal for personal gain because the benefits outweigh the possible consequences." He opened his right hand. "What about good aspects of humanity? Even that stems from selfishness. People will often help others through acts of charity to keep up a good appearance in front of other humans. People will fall in love with others through sheer lust, and then proceed to be kind to each other for the rest of their lives because they want to keep the benefits gained from such a relationship. Goodness of the heart and charity has the possibility for gains and rewards." A sardonic laugh escaped him. "Look at the world! Look at the state it's in! Countries that prosper won't help the ones falling behind because that would delay their own progress, so they'll leave them behind for their own benefit. Of the hundreds of countries in the world, a handful possess weapons capable of destroying the world hundreds of times over, annihilating all life. They talk of nuclear disarmament, but decades after decades of these talks and there's still enough to destroy the world, even if the number of nuclear weapons in the world are a shadow of their former number. The countries that have them argue that it's for the sake of nuclear deterrence, and they may be correct, but can you deny that it is a selfish act to keep them around despite the wishes of the general population? What about the world itself? Day in and day out it's polluted. Oil spills and toxic emissions made by the humans, and they don't stop even though they know how detrimental it is to the environment. Forests are cut down. Species rendered extinct. All of this because of human selfishness."

Face turning somber, he turned towards the ground. "They're doomed," he said. "They're just killing themselves at this point. And the worst part is that it isn't even their fault. They know all of this and try to fix it, but that selfishness is the root core of humanity. The few who manage to overcome this selfishness are too few in number. Trying to increase this number to overcome basic human nature is unrealistic and futile. Many have tried and all of them failed. There's just... there's nothing that can be done to help them, because the problem is them."

"... Then what can be done?" Corvin quietly asked. "If they won't change, then what is there to do?" It seemed useless to Corvin once Alex put it like that, and it all made sense. It explained why they were like this, why Corvin perspective of the world was so dark. It was basic human nature.

At this question, Alex rose his head and looked back at Corvin. "Humanity got this far through years and years of evolution. Through selfishness, they managed to develop intellectual minds that only grew more intelligent with each generation." He raised his shoulders in a hapless shrug. "Humans evolved as their society evolved. Then the Industrial Revolution hit, and technological advancement skyrocketed. The world's more advanced than it's ever been, but that's the problem. Technology is going faster than their evolution. Their minds are outpacing their bodies." His shoulders fell. And now they've grown complacent with the world. They've gone stagnant. They simply aren't evolving fast enough to overcome the world their selfishness is creating, and because of this, they won't survive." He finally gave the first hint of a grin, something he hadn't shown in awhile. "I'm not the only one to have discovered this Truth. Some humans have done it," Alex mused. "Some talked of creating a society where the selfishness of humanity could be used for society's benefit. Helping others so they can develop themselves and help others, and so on and so forth. With how humanity is stagnating and how the world is, this simply won't do. We can't take out selfishness, either; that's the only thing that separates the humans from the animals. But let me ask you this, Corvin: what if we eliminated the need to be selfish?"

Corvin's eyes widened. "You... don't mean to say..."

"Think of my Evolved for a second here. My little spies. Move past their personalities and the roles I've made for them, and instead focus on their bodies." He began to slowly count off his fingers. "No need for sleep. Complete immunity from illness and toxins. Regeneration. No deformities or disabilities caused by genetic abnormalities. Food? With our abilities, consumption of any living biological material negates the need to spend so much effort on food, and they honestly don't need much to survive. They're bodies are hardy enough to survive in virtually any environment without discomfort. Hell, we can even eliminate the need for vehicles and transportation since their movement speed is faster than most cars'." He gripped Corvin's shoulders and moved their heads closer together. "Corvin, just think about it. Humans are selfish so they can obtain basic necessities in life and survive; that's why evolution created it. But an Evolved's body provided almost all the necessities a human needs. There would be no need to be selfish anymore. No more pain, no more suffering, no more need for unnecessary conflict." He waved his hand around. "Granted, this won't solve every problem out there. But it would fix nearly everything wrong with humanity, Corvin. It would make a peaceful world."

It was almost like a switch had gone off in Corvin. It was so dramatic his entire body reared back in shock, and his hands were flung to the sides of his head. His mind was a whirlwind of thought, and he had to forcefully still himself just to think straight through all of it.

It... it all made sense. All of it. Everything Alex said explained the reason for why the world was like this. Why every world he had been to had the same people, the same misery and suffering everywhere. It was in their nature. All the hate he had seen spread by people was natural, which meant that no matter what happened, no matter how far society reached or how advanced the people became, it would never end. It would just keep happening, despite everything the few people who managed to set aside their selfishness did to help this matter. But Alex's answer would fix all of that.

Fix. Maybe... maybe it could even fix his world.

This was what he had been searching for. Why he had felt so... unsatisfied with just returning to the world in the state he was in. That world he had come from was so divided due to war and the hatred spread by all the species living there. Humans weren't exempt; keidran, basitins- every species with intelligence and sapience he'd encountered was afflicted with selfishness. It was the same in every world. How were his friends and loved ones supposed to find happiness in a world such as that? And what about him? Before now, he hadn't had a single clue as to how changing the world for the better was even a possibility. And now that he did... well, he couldn't just sit back and do nothing. Not when there was a very real chance of making the world a better place where everyone, including himself, could be happy. One without all of this selfishness and hate and prejudice and wars that took away countless.

His hands slowly fell away from his head, and he looked up at Alex. "I hear everything that you've said, Alex. And I want to help you make this better world of yours." He wasn't that hopeful of a fool. There was a saying that if something was too good to be true, it usually was. So he would help Alex accomplish his plan and observe the results. Kind of like an experiment of sorts. He still had a hundred-odd years until he could go back to his world. That was plenty of time to help Alex remake the world and examine it long enough to determine if Alex's solution was in fact a viable one for making a better and peaceful world.

Alex seemed taken back in shock by this statement. "You're serious?" he asked. "After everything you've heard, you want to help me do all of this? You're sure?"

"I'm tired of seeing so much darkness in the world, Alex. I'm sick of it all. So if you really think that you can fix it all, I want to help." He tilted his head at him and smiled. "At the very least, I want to see if it actually works. It wouldn't sit right with me if there was a way to fix what was wrong with the world and let the opportunity go untouched, especially with no alternative in sight. So let's do it. Let's make a better world."

Alex still seemed in shock from Corvin's words. His eyes seemed to scrutinized his face for any signs of dishonesty or falseness. When he found none, an actual smile graced his face. "I'm relieved to hear this, Corvin. Truly," he said. "To be completely honest with you, I was worried you would overreact and do something stupid. Call me a monster for wanting to do this or something. That's part of the reason why I had to be so selective with my Evolved, you know, since not everybody in the world would agree to something like this. And even then, some of those Evolved are, well... unhinged."

"Unhinged?" Corvin repeated. "What do you mean?"

"It's an ego thing with them. You make them biologically superior to all humans in the world, and they think they're on top of said world. Then they get a bit detached from their humanity. Doesn't help most of them are former Gentek and Blackwatch." He shook his head. "This solution only works if everybody is turned, Corvin. Otherwise this happens and a schism is created between one group- humans- and the other group- Evolved-. It's everybody or nobody with this plan. I'm already going to have to kill the Evolved I've already made to help carry the plan out before we infect everybody else. Don't want to risk that inflated ego and detachment of theirs to spread to the rest of the Evolved once they're created. See what I mean?"

"Makes sense," Corvin agreed. A lot of the problems in the world he had come from were caused by discrimination between humans and keidran. He knew the kind of trouble a rift between two species could form. And if the few Evolved Alex had already created had to die to avoid spreading that idea, so be it. It was like removing a cancer before it grew into a problem. Preventative medicine was all it was. "So how exactly are you going to infect everybody in the world?" Corvin questioned.

"Why do you think I've been manipulating Gentek and Blackwatch so much? They're going to take care of almost everything for us. I don't want to tell you exactly what it is yet, since it isn't ready. I want to wait until I have everything sorted, but once I do-!" He rose up to his feet and clapped his hands together. "-it's going to be beautiful, Corvin. Now then, I wanted-"

He was interrupted by a noise penetrating the air between them. A melodic, electronic tune that originated from one of Alex's pockets. The both of them stared blankly at each other before Alex reached into his pocket and took out what was making the noise: a cell phone.

"You actually carry one of those around?" Corvin asked with a raised eyebrow.

Alex shrugged. "It pays to keep connected." He flipped the phone open and held it to his ear, his eyes narrowing in an annoyed fashion. Corvin couldn't hear what was being said at the other end of the phone, but it sounded frantic. And yet, Alex only grew more annoyed by the words.

"What? You're- agh, dammit. Fine. Hold on, I'm sending somebody right now to sort this through." With an irritated sigh, Alex snapped the phone shut, and then faced Corvin. "Hey, did you ever find and talk to Heller?"

"I did," Corvin answered. "He didn't really listen to anything I said. Literally brushed me off."

Shaking his head, Alex muttered a curse under his breath. "Least you tried," he muttered. "Remember Koenig, the Evolved I sent you here to make sure didn't get splattered over the walls by Heller? Well, in a good ten minutes a splatter is all he's likely to be."

"Did Heller find out he's an Evolved?" Corvin asked.

"No, but Koenig did something stupid, so Heller will find out real quick if they get into contact." He shook his head once more. "While he's not exactly imperative to my plan, he still plays an important role. Just go to where he is and try to stall Heller so Koenig can get out of here. He's at Base Nine, that Blackwatch base in the middle of the Yellow Zone. Old guy, pompous attitude. Can't miss him." He threw the phone at Corvin, which he caught. "Take this and call Koenig once you get there."

Corvin frowned. He felt a tad annoyed at having to go on an errand, wanting to go back to his friends, but what was he to do? Ignoring Alex wasn't exactly in his best interest, especially now. "Got it." Corvin supposed saving the world would have to wait.


The name of the base sure did help Corvin to finding it. And boy, was it abuzz. Soldiers were running around everywhere while others were barking orders at them, almost in preparation. Along with that were the alarms blaring and the lights shining everywhere. Probably against James. If Koenig was hinted off at Heller coming after him, and he really was as high up in Gentek as Alex claimed, then there was little doubt he had enough sway to pull something like this off.

From a nearby rooftop, Corvin looked down at the proceedings. It wouldn't be enough. There was a few rocket launchers at best, and not a single armored vehicle. He doubted this kind of defense could stop an Evolved, let alone a halfling like Heller. With a roll of his eyes, he opened the phone Alex had given him and scrolled to the contacts list. Conveniently enough, Koenig's name was the only one listed there. Alex either had a lot of phones or Koenig was annoying enough that he deserved his own phone that Alex could turn off whenever he wanted. Shrugging his shoulders, Corvin called the number. He wasn't that surprised when it picked up a second later.

"Yes, yes!? What is it!?" Corvin had to wince and hold the phone away from his ear upon hearing the loud and crotchety voice at the other end. No wonder Alex had looked so annoyed.

"This is Koenig, right?" Corvin asked. He had to raise his voice so it would reach the phone he held away from him. "Alex sent me to... save you, I guess? You are in danger, correct?"

"Oh, finally! You have no idea how long I've been waiting." He heard the sound of papers being shuffled madly from the other end of the line. "I assume Mercer has informed you of everything?"

Corvin had to roll his eyes. "I just said that," he mumbled quietly to himself, and then said to the phone, "yes."

"Good, good." His voice really was grating to Corvin. He wouldn't be surprised of Heller was coming to kill him just for how his voice sounded. "Now I've diverted Heller's attention for the time being, but it won't be long before he ends up here. I've prepared to put him down by-"

"What?" Corvin interrupted. "What do you mean 'put him down?' You're supposed to be leaving, not fighting."

"Oh, balderdash." The phone's screen cracked when Corvin's grip on the device tightened. "Heller is a thoughtless brute who is more of a inconvenience than anything else. He's a danger to Mercer's plan, I tell you. Our plan. It would be better if-"

"Listen here, Koenig." A small amount of anger began to boil inside of Corvin at the Evolved's words. This thing that didn't even know it wouldn't be alive to see plan's fruition. "Alex wants you alive, and you trying to kill Heller because you simply don't like him is the exact opposite of that. So you're going to dash whatever little plan you concocted in order to try and kill Heller. You're going to wait in your little base over there and wait for me to fix all of this, and then you're moving to whatever zone you deem safe enough to continue your work. Do you understand?"

"Who do you think you are?" the old voice on the other end hissed. "Do you even know how important I am to Mercer's plan? Somebody like you, a nameless nobody, has no right to talk down to me like that."

Corvin really didn't like this person. Maybe this was that ego thing Alex had been talking about. No wonder he wanted these Evolved dead before he turned everybody. "Koenig, you're talking to somebody who could easily break you in half. If you don't listen to what I say, I'm going into that base to cut your legs off so I can drag you out of this zone personally. So shut up and let me work." He crouched down and eyed the area around the base. "You distracted Heller, right? How?"

"... I diverted his attention with a Blackwatch attack force." There was still cold anger in Koenig's voice, but it was more subdued now. "I predict it won't take more than around five minutes for him to arrive. He's already defeated the troops I sent and obtained all the information he needed from the commander. That's how the situation sounded over the radio."

"Mmm." That wasn't much time, but he could work with it. "Okay. I'm going to kill everybody at the base now."

"W-what?" Koenig sputtered. "Why on earth would you do that?"

"They're just going to get in the way when Heller gets here. I like things quiet," Corvin answered. "Besides, if nobody but me is there, Heller might assume you have already left, or maybe I can lie to him. Anybody else in that base?"

"No. All the soldiers are outside."

"Well, good. Stay in there and stay quiet." He crushed the phone before Keonig could say another word. "I hate these things," he mumbled to himself. Ironic, since he liked computers so much. But phones were just annoying to him, despite their use. Everybody was always on them, and people could be so rude while using them. And those awful ringtones. He couldn't stand most of them.

Feeling relieved at the brief silence, Corvin rose to his feet and felt his arms shift as his fingers turned to claws. He did genuinely desire to try and fool Heller into thinking Koenig had left, but really he desired some small amount of catharsis. Those were Blackwatch troopers down there, after all. And Blackwatch was the reason Hawke was dead. And Koenig was the only important one here.

Too bad he only had a few minutes. Being speedy about this was the last thing on his mind.


That two-faced lying old and twisted fuck.

'Oh, don't worry, James. I only want to help you, I promise.' Lying prick. He'd actually believed him, too, since he'd been helping James out so much. Pointing him out to some of Blackwatch's projects so he could shut them down for good, giving him advice on his powers. He seemed so sympathetic too when those Blackwatch fucks were trying to feed him to zombies back at that research center. So imagine his surprise when he absorbed the memories of one of the many scientific egomaniacs Gentek seemed to love hiring who knew Koenig, and who was having a conversation with that scientist on how he planned to betray Heller.

Well. That was one cockney old coot to scratch off the list of people he hated. He was going to smash that egghead of his so far down his throat he'd be able to inspect his own colon, and then he was eating him.

Base Nine. There it was, fuckin' perfect. Took him a few minutes of running, but he finally found it thanks to the directions that Blackwatch commander gave him. Now all he had to do was hop in there, cut every person wearing black he saw in half, then body a senile old man for double-crossing him.

He got as far as landing in the middle of the base, then halted to a stop. Mainly because it looked like somebody already did the whole cutting-in-half bit for him, as every soldier in the base was in pieces and dead on the ground.

Wariness began to grow in James, particularly when he didn't even hear any alarms. Looking around, he saw that almost all the electronic equipment lying around was smashed.

"Looks like I missed the party," he muttered to himself. The hell did all of this? He didn't see any cages around, so it couldn't have been a Brawler or any other escaped Blackwatch monster. And he was pretty sure he hadn't touched this base yet. So what did this?

"You really didn't." James whipped his body around when he heard that voice. He sighted its owner sitting on top of a wrecked viral sensor, those damn machines Blackwatch placed everywhere to detect him. It was that creepy kid from earlier. Right now he was sitting with one arm slung over his knee, his other hand slowly brushing his black locks away from his eyes as he stared at James. Under the viral sensor was a marine whose leg was pinned under the machine, which he was desperately trying to free.

James felt his brow furrow. He thought the kid was annoying at first, and was quite shocked to learn he was infected like he was, but James didn't think he'd do something like this. "Thought you said that killing off bases was bad for business," James stated.

"You started it," he countered. "You think I wanted any of this? I'd rather be with my friends right now, you know. They're going through a really hard time right now, so they could use all the support they could get. Yet here I am, cleaning up the mess of an inept and shortsighted scientist." He hopped down from the sensor and crouched down next to the struggling marine. "I really hate soldiers, you know."

That was a good tug at James's anger. "What was that?" he asked.

"They just all look the same to me," he muttered. "They move the same, and talk the same. Some even think the same. They'll change their whole personality to try and conform to the military they choose to follow and blindly follow orders due to their trust in their country. Most would call that selfless bravery. I think it's lunacy." He smashed his flattened hand down on the marine's head, crushing it. "Mindless drones. That's all I see when I look at a soldier. You were one once, were you not?"

James felt his mouth tug into a violent snarl. He felt personally offended by the kid's words, having been a former marine himself. "The fuck would you know about being a soldier?" he asked.

"Mh. A lot from the memories I've taken." He rose to his full height and faced James. "Don't tell me you're trying to defend these drones."

"Skinny prick like you wouldn't know a thing about what it takes to be a soldier," James said. He didn't care what those memories said. He'd sacrificed a lot to reach the rank of sergeant, back when he was with the military. It took more than just blindly following orders. It took a lot of guts, pain, and determination- something James doubted the sociopathic asshole in front of him had. "They're men who gave their lives for what they believed in, not faceless robots who move and act the same. You don't get to go around killing them just because you don't like them."

He actually tittered at that. "It's admirable that you would defend the people who are actively trying to murder you simply because they were told to, James. But I digress; we didn't come here to talk philosophy, did we?" He began to take a step forwards, but then stepped back in surprise. "Oh dear, where're my manners? I didn't even introduce myself to you last we met!" He spread his arms out and gave a mocking bow to James, the eyes on his lowered head still focused upwards at James. "My name is Corvin Drevis. I'd say it's a pleasure to finally get acquainted with you, but considering the circumstances, it really isn't." His mocking smile fell as he went back to his normal posture. "Seriously though, you need to leave. There's nothing for you here."

"I ain't leaving till I get my hands around that old prick's neck, you flamboyant fuck," James swore.

Corvin seemed to flinch back. "Why the harsh language?" Corvin asked. "It's really unnecessary, you know. And that's another trait almost every soldier has, too. They swear like sailors. It's honestly really awful."

James scoffed. "What, like you never let a curse out?"

"No. I haven't. I feel foul language like that really lowers my charm." Corvin shook his head. "But I won't be the one to try and tell you how to speak. Where were we again, Koenig? Ah, yes." He looked behind him, at the main building in the middle of the base. "I'm afraid that rude geezer has already flown the coop, James. You won't find him here."

"That a fact?" James asked.

"Of course. I heard you were coming here, so naturally I killed everybody here to give Koenig a good excuse to evacuate. He's long gone by now. Which gives us plenty of time to talk about your recent behavior."

Irritation hit James at that. The place looked empty enough, and it would make sense that Koenig would leave if somebody was tearing apart the base. Likely scenario was that he assumed Corvin was James, causing him to flee. Damn. He'd have to look all over for him. But that could wait until later.

"Oh, yeah?" A crimson glow lit up James's face as he arms turned to claws, the red light bleeding out from the black tendrils replacing his arms. "And how's that going to work, pretty-boy?"

"I'm amazed that you're finding a new derogative term to label me with at every passing sentence," Corvin drawled. "I'm also a bit disappointed you would turn to violence so quickly. I just wanted to have a nice chat." He shrugged. "Ah, well. Words are probably wasted on a simpleton like you, anyways."

He was ready right then and there to pounce on Corvin and tear his face right off, but that was when he heard the all-too-familiar beat of helicopter blades beating at the air. One of the attack helicopters be'd become so familiar with ever since he'd became infected rose out from behind the building, its weapons pointed directly at James. Flying it was a Blackwatch pilot, but behind him was the person who made James's blood pressure rise, if that was even possible now. Koenig. He could see that bright-white lab coat from a mile away.

Corvin turned his head around at the sound, then slumped his shoulders at the sight of the helicopter's occupant. "That idiot..." he growled out.

James didn't miss a beat, not knowing or caring about why Koenig was still here, and leaped as high as he could so he could grab that helicopter and rip Koenig right out of it. He was stopped mid-air when a pair of arms wrapped around his midsection.

"Not so fast!" Corvin ground out, and then threw James back to the ground. He hit the ground with a thump, then rolled away to avoid Corvin's foot from impacting him. Growling, James swiped out with his claws. But much to his frustration, Corvin nimbly dodged and ducked over and under every single one of his calculated slashes. He even blocked with a claw of his own eventually, the deep-blue light of his bio-luminescence clashing with James's crimson. Their claws finally clashed with a shower of sparks as they struggled against each other.

"Where the hell'd a kid like you learn to fight?" Heller groaned. He actually felt himself being pushed back, and he was using both claws. Corvin was only using one, and had a genuinely bored look on his face.

"Gee, I don't know. It's almost like I've accrued decades worth of combat experience from all the soldiers I've consumed or something." With a flick of his clawed wrist, he sent James sliding back. "And it's not like this is my first fight, either. You wouldn't believe the things I've went through."

"A-huh." James looked up at the helicopter behind them. He could already see the targeting lasers painting over them. A cruel idea began to form in his head, causing him to smirk. "Then I guess a real expert like you would know to be real mindful of their surroundings, huh?"

Corvin tilted his head. "What?" He seemed to think on James's words for a moment, then widened his eyes and turned around. "What!?" he shouted when he saw the targeting lasers of the helicopter's weapons.

"Gotcha." Once again, James felt his arms shift. In place of the long, serrated claws was a pair of malformed, three-fingered hands with even more black and red tendrils around his arm than usual. He hated Blackwatch and Gentek with a burning passion, and the virus that spawned all of his troubles even more. These had come from that tunneling Hydra monster they captured awhile back, and oh was he having fun with them. Stringing things up always seemed to have their uses- such as this.

He flung his hands out, and from them came the black and red tendrils he'd grown accustomed to. One end of the dozen or so of the tentacles a spawned from his hands adhered to Corvin's body, while the other ends flung out in random directions to stick to the stationary surfaces of the walls and ground.

Shocked, Corvin looked down at the tendrils stuck to him and struggled, but it was already too late. He could already see missiles leave the helicopter and stream their way towards the two of them. By that point James had already jumped out of the way. This only left Corvin, whose body was engulfed in the explosion caused by multiple missiles impacting the ground near him. Last James saw of him was his flaming and torn-apart body fly past him and land in a writhing and unrecognizable mess.

"Hmph. That's one taken down." He glared up at the helicopter, which hovered in a stationary position from where it had fired missiles at them. At this rate, he'd be done before daybreak.


"Hn... what a cheap shot..."

Those were the first words Corvin spoke when his mouth finally regenerated. To his disdain, those missiles were built to do quite a bit of damage. He wouldn't be surprised if they put napalm in the cursed things. They were equipped with the intention of fighting biological weapons, after all. It would certainly explain why his body wouldn't stop burning for awhile. Or maybe Koenig special-ordered that just for the occasion.

Geh. James blindsiding him and Koenig pulling that idiotic stunt. If any of them were still alive, he didn't know what he would do once he got his hands on them.

He patted off the last of the flames from his shoulder with a huff. He hadn't kept track of time, as it was especially hard to keep track of such a thing without the aid of some senses. Helicopter Koenig was in had crashed and was currently burning, so that was a bad sign. With a frustrated groan, he hopped up to a ridiculous height and glided to the top of the building in the center of the base, looking around. The area around the base, the whole block, was a wreck. Cars were overturned, there were deep fractures in the ground, and to top it all off there was deep gash marks in many of the buildings. All inherent signs of a fight, which was bad.

His eyes widened when he saw two figures standing on a nearby rooftop. One was James, who looked very heated. To Corvin's alarm, the one talking to him was in fact Alex, and not Koenig. And between them was a bloody stain on the roof. That... was probably Koenig. Or what was left of him, anyways.

Whoops.

He saw Alex pat Heller on the back, then saw him leap away. Heller stared after him, muttered something under his breath, then leaped away in the opposite direction.

Corvin sighed. Well, this wasn't good. An utter failure, actually. A splattered Koenig was the exact opposite of what Alex had wanted. Hopefully he wouldn't be too mad, or-

"Quite a blunder, eh, Corvin?"

Startled, Corvin turned around in shock to see Alex grinning at him, arms crossed as he leaned against a wall. He didn't seem too mad, at the very least. Corvin hoped that was the case.

"I... apologize, Alex," Corvin mumbled. "It seems I've failed."

"Yeah. You did." Alex pushed himself off the wall. "Don't beat yourself up too much over it. The missiles Blackwatch pack into their choppers can be pretty nasty. Saw you pulling yourself together on the way here. Good on you for managing to survive, by the way."

"... Thanks," Corvin muttered. Embarrassment started to go through him, and he found himself wanting to change the subject. "What did you talk to Heller about?" he asked.

"I expressed my great displeasure at him consuming Koenig, then assured him that my 'grand plan to eliminate Gentek and Blackwatch' was coming to fruition." He smiled and then shook his head. "I don't know how longer that lie will hold up, though."

Corvin's head picked up in interest. "He doesn't know about the real plan?" he questioned.

"Corvin, James isn't exactly as... open-minded, let's say, as you. He blames the Mercer Virus for the death of his wife and kid, and he's been tearing apart everything he feels is responsible. You really think he'd spring for my plan? He barely trusts me as it is."

Corvin could see that. He'd encountered him twice, and both times he just felt so much anger permeating off of the man. He really hated everything that had to do with all of this, and seeing as Corvin was infected with Blacklight, which was in fact a part of the outbreak, he probably wasn't in that good of a light in Heller's view. The man did just tie him down so he could be blown up with missiles.

"Why do you keep him around?" Corvin asked. "You said he was fine at stirring up chaos to accelerate your plans, but he kept going despite me telling him to stop. Now he's actively becoming a detriment to your plan." Koenig may have been an idiot- the fact he didn't listen to Corvin and wound up dead proved that- but he was right in not trusting in Heller's worth. If anything, he was doing this all for himself. He didn't want peace, or a better world. It really looked like he just wanted revenge for his family.

"He's interesting," Alex said. "He's got something you and your friends got. By that, I mean he never contracted that inflated ego the other Evolved gained. No, he gained something else."

"Something else? Like what?" Corvin couldn't see what Alex was getting at. All he saw in Heller was extreme anger and hate. That wasn't much better than an inflated ego.

"Don't know. Still figuring it out," Alex answered. "That said, my patience only goes so far. If he keeps doing this..." His grin flashed into a predatory one, then transitioned back into a normal one. Anyways... Koenig's death is a bit of a setback, but nothing major. The plan is still in motion. If Heller would calm down, I'd call it a complete success so far."

"And even after you rushed us to go and find him," Corvin mused. All that work for nothing, just because of one man. It really was perplexing.

Alex chuckled. "Rushed? I just asked you to go find him and talk to him. How is that rushing?"

"Because you sent that Evolved that said you wanted us to hurry. Said you were getting nervous." Corvin turned around and raised his hands haplessly. "That seems pretty rushed to me."

"... What are you talking about?"

"The Evolved. The one you sent to check up on us." Corvin's hands fell. "The one who took Hawke to that base where he died."

"Corvin, I never sent any Evolved."

He froze at that. Corvin felt every cell in his body stop all motion at that statement. "... What?" he whispered.

"I didn't send any Evolved to check up on you," Alex repeated.

Corvin had to say that sentence in his head over and over again to make sure he was hearing that right. That the Evolved- the one who was indirectly responsible for leading Hawke to his death- wasn't sent by Alex. All this time he assumed it had been an accident due to wanting to rush things. Something unforeseen as a result of Alex's impatience. According to Alex, however, there was no impatience. And that base Hawke had been lead to was out of the way from their search pattern. Why that one in particular? According to Alex, he hadn't sent the Evolved, which meant Alex had no interest in the base where Hawke died. Which meant it was in the Evolved's interest. Which meant that it wasn't an accident, what happened to Hawke.

It was deliberate.

Alex cocked an unseen brow in interest when he saw Corvin's hands start to clench and un-clench very slowly. Some of the pebbles by his feet began to move away as he started to shake in place. And then, very slowly, he turned around to face Alex. The eyes were what caught his attention the most. And it wasn't the raw emotion in them- the absolute shock in fury in them. It was in the fact his deep-blue irises were starting to glow, and that one of his eyes had black, inky tendrils beginning to intrude in its whites.

"Where, exactly, is that Evolved again, Alex?"