Chapter 4: Ruthless Behavior
Fully twice the size of the other groups, the Chikara division stood two hundred and nineteen strong. Having lost only thirty-one subjects, the section was the second largest in size of all of the nine divisions.
--I Hate Americans, Mieren, FanFiction.net
Training Center VIII: Chikara Division
Africa, Earth
23 March, AC. 185"Sir," Rasa Vermond, one of the minor instructors of the Chikara Division, softly said, trying to catch only the Chief Instructor's attention, something that she had suspected for a long while had suddenly made itself clear once the dust had settled.
Julius tilted his head in her direction, not taking his eyes off the action in the field for a moment. A brief second later he was looking down at her, eyes glittering icy-blue in the sun. "Yes, Vermond?"
"Sir," she hesitated only for a instant, "do you think that perhaps subject Eight-eighty was somehow mistakenly placed in this Division? While he heals well and takes no real harm from the training, he is-" She paused.
"Lacking, I know. And there is his intellect, and weapon skill to consider as well as his habit of being unnoticed." Julius nodded once, "He does not belong in this group, perhaps in Kage or Daichi yes, but he is middle ground even then. An anomaly." It seemed plausible, none of the children were specifically designed for any particular group, simply made en masse and fractioned out among the training centers.
Rasa took a chance to disagree a little bit with her superior. "Well, actually sir. I took the liberty of looking in the other division records and noting irregularities, our Eight-eighty is not unique."
"Oh?" This caught Julius' attention. "There were others not unlike him?"
"Yes sir, in Mizu there were a pair that acted similarly, as well as one in Daichi and three in the new joined group, Kage-Juuryoku. They were all below average in the skill that was being taught, but they made up for it other ways. The Mizu pair, for example, were much better at agility than in their specified element. One in Kage-Juuryoku was seen making palm-sized ball lightning, the other two played games with water, and the one in Daichi made a few fast-spreading wildfires. They were much like our eight-eighty and his skill in weapons and high intelligence."
One eyebrow lowered, "I am noticing you were using the past tense, Rasa. Why?"
"Unfortunately sir, all other subjects had been terminated for not meeting required standard. Looking at the one we have here. I thought there might be a chance to sort him out for specialty training before he could be culled."
"Specialty training?" This gave Julius ideas.
"Yes, sir, perhaps for a technician or as a bodyguard or something along those lines. It seems a waste to throw away a perfectly capable individual when the available talent could be turned elsewhere."
Julius fixed Rasa with such a penetrating stare that the younger instructor quickly began to quail a little beneath his gaze. "If I did not know better, Rasa Vermond, I would think you are beginning to become attached to these weapons. That is what they are, have you forgotten that?"
"No sir," Rasa swallowed, highly unnerved by the look in her superior's eyes, "Never, sir," she said, looking back towards the field where the children were starting to regroup for inspection.
Julius let her go, his point made.
Though, he was slightly disappointed, he had wanted a fight.
* * *
Barton Foundation, Science and Medical Research Branch
Building # 4
Africa, Earth
24 March, AC. 185Doctor Cristobel Barton never raised his voice. As the scientist in charge of the Shinigami projects, and at the top of the Barton family hierarchy of power, at least in the medical field, he didn't have to and rarely saw a reason to do so.
Besides, he had plenty of subordinates to do his yelling for him.
As he leaned towards Demeter, Doctor Demeter Ederle, he took a moment to wonder why that last name rung a bell to him. He remembered in an instant, Demeter had no real last name, having only been assigned the name Demeter and an identification number before she had flushed out of her training. She had picked up 'Ederle' to add to her name from her mentor, Doctor Karl Frederick Ederle, whom she had been trained under. The former Dr. Ederle was three years into a visit in the skull orchard now. 'Demeter… What a laughably ridiculous name.' Cristobel thought to himself in smug amusement, 'They must have drawn some of those names out of a hat, after taking them from an overdue library book or something of that kind to tag anyone with a name like Demeter.' Cristobel smiled, it wasn't a friendly gesture.
Demeter thought she could smell a faint odor on his breath. It smelled rather like Merlot or several shots of Caribbean rum. It was a sweetish kind of odor, chemical for certain, but what it was she did not know.
"These children are not your concern," he said, scrutinizing her from over the rims of his glasses, "nor is any other project that does not relate to your field, or to those assignments to which you are not assigned."
The time that had passed since they had last seen each other had not been kind to Barton in Demeter's opinion. The man had grown more bloated than she remembered, his complexion had darkened, probably from all those days being spent out at numerous training facilities, it clashed nauseatingly with his white-gold hair and pale eyes. Aside from visiting those facilities, as River had reported him doing, he remained in his office and lavishly spacious apartments nearby most of the time, studying all the projects going on within the Barton Foundation and checking on their progress from the sanctuary of his personal space. All the while looking for more ways to consolidate his power.
"With all due respect, sir, I believe it is my concern. The genetics from which these copies have been made, genetics from the one called Damia who along with the rest of her group was termed a finished experiment, must not be misused-"
"That will be enough, Demeter Ederle. I fail to understand why you insist on seeing conspiracies around every corner. Whatever you believe is happening in the experiment you very nearly disrupted is utterly false. They are an experiment to garner information, which will be shared in open conferences with other firms, diplomatic discussions at best. Anything that we uncover that is useful is available for all to benefit from. That is all." Barton said, looking at her coldly. For a few moments there was quiet. "I take your silence as insubordination, Doctor Ederle."
'Benefit to all? He must really believe me daft if he thinks that statement throws me at all. He takes himself entirely too seriously. If I didn't see something extremely unethical and very unprincipled about that operation I wouldn't be here, and I wouldn't have cared at all about it.' Demeter bitterly thought. 'Still, he's taking himself too high here, even his office reflects it. A place for everything and everything in its place. Everything on his desk is arranged in a geometric pattern. The starkly proper certificates and diplomas on the walls. Even the furniture here is something more suited to something in the military…' Demeter observed with well-hidden disgust, then something flashed in her head, 'The military! It all goes back to the military!'
"I am not insubordinate, sir. If I were not loyal to the concerns and demands of the Barton Foundation and Romefeller I would not be here. As a scientist I wish to continue to serve wherever I am capable. I am currently between assignments, on research leave, and with that I request to formally be transferred and assigned to Africa, and to that training facility I earlier visited."
Cristobel turned away, swiveling on the ball bearings of his chair to face the picture window behind him. "Request denied. You are dismissed."
Demeter could not fail to notice the militaristic style of the dismissal. The man was too pompous and pig-headed for words. "What assignment do you suggest then, sir?"
"You know the proper channels Ederle, use them."
"I was under the impression that-"
"I believe you may not have heard me, Doctor. You were dismissed." Barton swiveled back to look at her, "The next time I am forced to repeat myself, you will leave with a guard escort."
"Very well," Demeter said, knowing she had no other choice. She had pressed this interview as far as it could go, "I thank you for your time, excuse me Doctor Barton."
After Demeter left, Cristobel thought for a long time, staring unblinkingly at the door where she had made her exit. He was uneasy around her, as he was similarly uneasy around any of her siblings, the few who were still alive anyway. This whole Shinigami project had opened a can of worms with them and Demeter was among four that were closer than he would like to being able to do something about it. A lesson needed to be taught, before any more trouble of Demeter's kind began to brew... or if the others got ideas of their own. Taking a deep breath in and out once to center himself, he reached for the switch on his intercom and asked his secretary to send Nikolai to him, his head of personal security.
* * *
Tall and gaunt, Nikolai stood at ease before Cristobel. He was thin, but wiry, with dark gray eyes flecked with ice-chips of light blue. Unlike most people, Nikolai had virtually no memorable physical traits. Barton often caught himself glancing at him every once in a while; just to remember what he looked like. Of tall height and lean build, Nikolai was a bit thin for most people's standards, but it suited him perfectly. His head was framed by close-cropped hair that made its medium-brown color almost unnoticeable.
"I would like you to perform another elimination, Nikolai. Choose two of your best people for the job."
Nikolai nodded acceptance to the orders. "The target?" Nikolai asked, he never spoke much, and when he did it was brief and to the point.
"Doctor Demeter Ederle."
"The one who just left." It sounded more like a statement of fact rather than a question.
"Yes, that was her. Remember, I do not want to be connected to the deed, in fact, make sure that the Foundation isn't connected at all. I do not want you carrying any ID in case something goes wrong."
"We never do."
"Just a reminder, she is soldier-trained after all. Plan this well, but do it quickly."
"My duty as always."
"Dismissed."
Nikolai, expressionless as always, bowed once and turned to walk out the door Demeter had so recently passed through. He took the time in crossing to choose whom he would be bringing for this mission, he knew Demeter's history, and because of that history he could not bring his most capable underling. 'Darius shall not like this at all.' He languidly thought.
As Nikolai neared the halfway point to the door, Cristobel suddenly had a flash of insight. "Nikolai?" He quickly said.
Nikolai paused and turned back, "Sir?"
"I want you to take a certain someone with you as well as your two men. He is not a target, but I want him to see. So he won't meddle either."
"His name?"
"Buhallin, Julius Buhallin."
"Yes sir."
"Dismissed."
* * *
For a minute or so after Nikolai left, Cristobel Barton deeply regretted the necessity of eliminating Demeter Ederle, specialists like her were few and very far between, and she had progressed to the level of very good, very quickly in her career. It was a shame to lose her; he could have milked a good forty more years out of her otherwise.
Two minutes after Nikolai left his office Cristobel Barton returned to his routine, examining with a judicious and critical eye examining reports, making notes and comments on the progress of certain routines, filing data reports for Romefeller, calling in various scientists for more details on their various projects. Work always was his best analgesic.
By the end of the day, he would have completely forgotten about Demeter Ederle.
Compartmentalizing was Cristobel's best skill and greatest qualification for being the head of the Medical Branch in his family. It helped in his scheming to gain that office and it would continue to help him in doing what few of his predecessors had accomplished, staying in office, and staying alive for that period. He had seen early on that intrigue created success, and he, in turn, became very skilled at creating intrigue. He was so good at it that few people ever caught him doing it, Nikolai then took care of them. The Shinigami Project was his latest brainchild, it would probably be his best one yet, and no one suspected a thing. Well… it had become clear though, that Dr. Demeter Ederle had, and when Cristobel saw that, her fate was sealed.