*Gah sorry for the delay everyone. Family issues and midterms really took a number from my free time and a new job to boot. Anyway I am back to it now and hopefully you all will enjoy this latest chapter. However, as no one has reviewed me yet, I ask you all again to leave a short tidbit on improvements I could make or if I am just doing a good job. In addition, in order to make Jerron a little bit more unique, I am wondering if you all could leave some ideas for some abilities he could've gained over the centuries. Please no uber powers like gravity control or molecular manipulation. Thank you all in advance.*

Running along rooftops in the night never gets old really. Due to the chaos happening in the city, we focused on speed rather than stealth as Blackwatch was a bit preoccupied with infected mutants trying to kill them.

Mercer led me to a small room on the rooftop, commenting, "Home sweet home for now." We walked inside and I was surprised to find a girl.

Racking my brain on Mercer I had collected beforehand, I did a quick bow and introduced myself, "Hello there madam, I believe you are Mercer's sister yes? My name is Joseph." I offered my hand to her.

Not one to be taken on mere manners, suspiciously she replied, "Yes I am Dana Mercer, and though I know your name, who the hell are you and what is your connection to all of this?"

I showed my teeth in a feral grin answering, "Like I said I am Joseph, and as for who I am, well that is a story that could take years to tell. Suffice to say that I am here to stop this virus. You don't seem as if you have many allies, and if things get as bad as I think they can, a bigger group has a better chance. I wish you no harm, unless you mean to let the infection world domination and end of humanity. You know, the usual."

She rolled her eyes saying, "Great, a comedian. Were you infected by this virus as well or do you just hate Gentek?" I said, "Why, a bit of both really Ms. Mercer. You see, as I told Alex here, if Greene would be his mother, then I would be his father. I had the virus first and I don't like sharing, especially with millions of people liable to turn into monsters. So how about we get to stopping this thing. Now I have a few leads at Gentek I still might be able to check up on, if my disguise hasn't been broken through yet. What about you Alex?"

It was Dana that spoke up for him, "Here Alex. Does the name Karen Parker ring any bells? Well it should. She was close to you, an ex-girlfriend. I have her address from the laptop. Get to her before the military makes her disappear. If I can find this lead, you can bet that they will to. And Alex, be careful."

Cracking my neck a little, I stated, "Well looks like it is our move this turn. Let's go have some fun." Alex glared at me declaring angrily, "Do you think this is some game? Have you seen all the dead and the dying?"

I walked past him and at the door, imparted my last words, "Alex when you have lived as long as I have, if you don't take the time to grin a little when things go bad, well there won't be much left of you after a while." I shut the door behind me.

While Alex was looking for his girlfriend, I went back to Gentek. Assuming my disguise, I tried to go in the main entrance, but those damn alarms kept making Blackwatch troops jittery and inspecting everyone. However, the more I thought about it, the more it didn't make sense. Those alarms were keyed into the Blackwatch and Redlight virus most likely. Sure, with them having a partial collection of the original strain, it was possible that they could detect me, but still there should have been some confusion in the systems as to what I was. Taking on a classic Blackwatch disguise, I slowly bore down on each alarm, hacking it to exclude me. The actual deed was a lot harder though, as my usual tricks weren't up to par, forcing me to extensively delve into the memories of a few programmers I had consumed in order to get past it. Doing the same with the other alarms, I had to hurry as they reset themselves every few hours in order to resist hacking attempts. I went to the bathroom where there weren't any cameras, and decided to wait in the stall. The head researcher of Mike's department had a bladder condition luckily, and normally had to go to the bathroom on his way in. He came in after five minutes and I consumed him stealthily.

Not the most elegant consumption, but the memories I needed came rushing in. Assuming his form I went to his office, examining the DNA strands he had to work with. Certain key bonding sites on the genetic code were marked. As my virus, Dark Genesis, was mutating unpredictably and constantly at a random rate, some strands look fragmented. Of course it could also have been just the effect of having only a partial strand. Key segments were marked though, indicating possible attack sites for a pathogen. That made me worried as it should have taken years of research to indicate even one attack site. If it applied to me it most likely applied to the others as well. "Crap," I whispered, "This isn't good. I don't care how smart these guys are, there is no way they would be able to do so well without help." I left the building discreetly before the alarms reset, and once I was far enough away, I ran to the hotel ASAP.

Changing back to normal I made a secure call to the Eldest. She questioned me, "Status report?"

I stated, along with a general summary of events, "So far things have been chaotic as expected. I knew this wasn't going to be easy, but I have both Greene and another infected being to contend with as well. Alex Mercer, a scientist, was infected on a massive level and became like me. In addition, I was in Gentek, and I saw what might be a way to destroy the virus. However, the information they had on the original strain, even a partial one, was much too detailed."

The Eldest coldly articulated to me, "Well well the Chroniclers will need to hear this about a new member we might get. Kill him if he turns against you of course. In addition, you suspect a Chronicler for helping them?"

Nodding, I replied, "Yes, I know Chroniclers have the freedom to do what they want, but when I joined, it was agreed that the virus could only be studied by the Chroniclers, the research being shared with no one. I would never suspect you elder, but there are others among the Elders who are not so innocent I believe."

Silence for a second, then she answered, "I will look into it on our end then. A word of warning though. Be careful with this Greene child. From her obvious control over the infected, she seems to be almost a queen for the infected. If she decides to make Alex her "King," kill them both. If she makes you "King" and you give in to it, I swear I will make you suffer for decades for falling for a genocidal bitch like that."

Gulping I said mockingly, "Awww there goes my master plan for world domination, and here I was going to make you my mistress."

Sighing loudly, she stated, "Goodbye Joseph, I expect your next update soon."

As the phone clicked off, I decided to investigate this viral attacker that Gentek seemed to be making. One for Blacklight and Redlight, one that they had mostly built themselves, I could understand that. But their ability to attack my cells DNA in the way they were describing was scary. I had lived so long with the virus that had shaped me, I wouldn't know what to do if I was cured. I didn't even know if I could survive a cure, so intertwined are Dark Genesis and I.

I ran, trying to find more scientists who would know what I needed. With my sharp eyesight I was able to tell a group of Gentek scientists, obviously heading out to lunch. Grinning, I prepared to have my lunch as well, being their biomass and memories. Changing into my combat form, I discarded stealth to consume the scientists while the civilians went running. A few soldiers tried to shoot me, but they were easy meat to take down. Hiding from military choppers and patrols sent to find me, I transformed to a random civilian disguise I had, and mulled over the memories I had acquired. From one of the higher ranked ones, it seems my suspicions were correct. They were trying to make a pathogen to destroy the virus. However, it appeared they needed a highly concentrated source, which meant Mercer unfortunately. He was who the pathogen was made for. However, including these other attack sites that should have made no sense even with Redlight involved, they were perfect for me. I tried to shift through the memories to see who could have the knowledge to do something like this, but I saw no one who came to mind. Sighing, I decided to go to a secondary Gentek lab to try and see this pathogen for myself.

*Meanwhile in a Gentek Lab*

"Dr. Crowls do you really think this thing will work," said the young assistant Daniel.

Juggling complex chemical processes, the Dr. answered, "Yes yes yes of course it will. I included these sequences as a precautionary measure, as there is no telling how the mutations have progressed. Evolution is fickle, and the rate this virus involves make it the challenge of a century to pin down. But it is late now Daniel, so why don't you head home." Daniel left, and after a few minutes, so did the doctor. As he walked home whistling he saw a few infected that tried to attack him. The doctor's face contorted into glee as lightning encircled his body to shoot out at the infected. "Ah good, I could always use more specimens. Now that the Chroniclers have ordered out of New York, hopefully I can capture that lovely carrier of Dark Genesis and finally get my wish to dissect him." Cackling widly, he gathered up the bodies in the dead of the night and took them away.