There was an eerie similarity to the Q'im'bly murder.
J'onn was in another university office, this one belonging to a Professor Gon'a'gal. She was a respected professor, much like Q'im'bly, an expert in their field, that being herbology. And like Q'im'bly, she sat in the chair behind her desk, eyes glazed over, throat slashed.
The similarities were very strong between the two cases.
There was no sign of struggle in the office, unless one took into account the blood spatters. There was research material on the computer terminal concerning H'ronmeer's Curse. Some were the same materials that were found on Q'im'bly's computer, though a couple different ones were present as well. Already, J'onn was wondering if the same paralytic agent had been used. In fact…
"I want toxicology to test her blood," J'onn ordered to a nearby technician. "We're searching for gelsium. I want to see if it is in her blood as well."
"That's specific," the technician observed, but was already pulling out a couple of vials, along with a needle.
"There are visual similarities between this murder and another and I want to establish a link, if it exists," the Manhunter explained. "If it is the same, then we are looking for the same killer."
The technician didn't respond to that, instead getting to work, taking a blood sample from the body. J'onn surveyed the room again, just as he had done when he arrived. The set up was very much like Q'im'bly's, down to the position of the furniture and even some decor. The only real difference was the subject matter and the name on the certifications.
Standing by the open doorway was Da'vizz, and he seemed rather quiet. He was just watching the team perform their tasks, not saying much. That wasn't too unusual as Da'vizz was more than happy to let others do their jobs without heavy-handed supervision. He had a sharp mind, so he was no doubt looking at this crime scene from other angles.
Mentally, J'onn reviewed what he knew of Professor Gon'a'gal, and he found himself focusing on their expertise. Herbology—the study of plants. He suspected the byproduct of one such plant to be involved. What were the chances…
"Does anyone know if there is a plant nursery on this campus?" J'onn called out.
"I will look into it," Da'vizz responded and immediately left the room.
Returning his attention back to the victim, J'onn moved over next to them, studying the edges of the knife wound. There was a knife lying on the floor, just below the professor's hand, another similarity between the two murders. This knife, however, was serrated, making the blade appear as if it had small teeth rather than a sharp edge. Glancing back to the wound, he noticed jagged edges of the cut, confirming that this knife had been used to kill the professor. The ends of the wound were also curved upwards, just like with Q'im'bly.
Oh yes, J'onn felt there was indeed only one killer involved.
"There's a nursery on the grounds, J'onn," Da'vizz suddenly announced. Turning his head, J'onn saw his partner standing in the doorway, leaning through it with one hand on the frame. "Follow me."
The two Manhunters left Gon'a'gal's office, J'onn following behind Da'vizz. It wasn't a long walk, the two exiting out of a side doorway and emerging out into the outdoors. A short distance away was a small square structure, one comprised of glass windows. Dark silhouettes could be seen through the glass.
"J'onn," Dav'izz suddenly spoke, stopping the Martian from approaching the structure. "I have to ask you something."
"What is it?" J'onn asked as he turned to face his partner.
"I have learned some…unsettling things recently," he began, seemingly reluctant. This didn't stop him from continuing, "Professor J'onzz's research—your brother's research—it has been quite critical of accepted doctrine."
J'onn frowned. He wasn't certain where Da'vizz was going with this. "He has engaged in taboo subjects from time to time," he admitted, wanting to see where this was going.
It was as if his words had physically assaulted Da'vizz, who flinched back. "You did know. All of this time, you knew."
"I'm not certain what is distressing you."
"I've looked into your brother, the one you claim to have limited contact with. Some of his work is outrageous," Da'vizz erupted, his telepathic projection quite loud. "Such disparaging work should have never been done! And you knew about it!"
Something was wrong here. "I found out—" J'onn began.
Only to be telepathically shouted over. "I can't believe this! How could you keep something like this from your own partner? Don't you think that is something I should have known about?!"
"I only found out about it recently," J'onn repeated himself. "Ma'alefa'ak only just told me—"
"And yet you didn't tell me or anyone else!" Da'vizz interrupted once more. "And now you are spending an extraordinary amount of time with him!"
"Because his expertise was necessary to investigate this epidemic. Of course—"
"What have you gotten from him? Huh? Any major breakthroughs? Anything to help us fight this diseased monster?"
"We have learned—"
"No!" J'onn was beginning to feel cross with all of the interruptions. His face hardened as Da'vizz spouted off, "Your brother has not helped us in the least, only serving as a distraction from our work. Look at what he works on! Designer pathogens. Discrediting the Great Mind. Psionic—"
"Enough!" J'onn bellowed, silencing his partner. Now he knew what was going on. The moment Da'vizz mentioned his brother's research into the Great Mind, he knew exactly who was pulling the man's strings. He hadn't been all that aware that Da'vizz was a religious man. They had discussed the topic from time to time, but neither one of them appeared to be that invested. Da'vizz had already performed the rites for H'ronmeer's Holy Week on the first day, mostly to have it over and done with. He did that every year and it never seemed to be out of excessive piety.
Someone from the Church had approached Da'vizz and set him on this path. Da'vizz was never one to be confrontational with people of authority. He always preferred others to address higher ranking officers when at the precinct. If a priest of significant rank had approached Da'vizz, he would have listened and believed whatever was told to him.
"I do not know what you have heard in regards to myself and my brother, but I promise you that I did not know about any of my brother's research until after we were assigned this case. That I had not divulged it to you is an oversight on my part, I will admit to this, but it was not done out of maliciousness," J'onn told the man.
"So you conveniently forgot to tell me," Da'vizz countered, though he was no longer projecting himself. He sounded more like a petulant child that was trying to save face. "I believe I am needed elsewhere at this time. I will see you at another time." His partner then turned and returned to the doorway they had only exited moments ago. J'onn watched him, annoyance his predominant emotion.
He was going to have to confront the priest that was manipulating Da'vizz. He would make certain to have Commander Kris'to'fer backing him of course, but this play of theirs was underhanded and needed to be dealt with. Without a response, the Church would only become more embolden and try other distasteful tactics.
In the meantime, he needed to confirm his suspicions. Heading to the plant nursery, he entered the small building, immediately feeling humid air wash over him. He was greeted with the sight of rows upon rows of plants, each blooming with flower petals. Some reached high into the air, as if reaching for the ceiling. Others were more content to keeping to their beds of soil, spreading out over the loam in which they sprouted.
J'onn recalled the picture he had seen of gelsium, the one from Lon'fon's lab. All alone in the nursery, he slowly strolled down each row, gazing at the plants and faintly marveling at their beauty. Some of the flowers were of spectacular colors of red, purple, orange, and yellow. Others were more sedate in lighter pinks, blues, and lavender.
Eventually, he found one loam bed with small green stalks growing low to the soil. White flower petals emerged from its center, surrounding small filaments and the stigma. There was a little placard nearby that indicated this was indeed the gelsium he sought.
Also, J'onn couldn't help but notice there were small patches of dirt visible, appearing as if something had been pulled out of it. That something was no doubt gelsium flowers.
It seemed he found where his suspect was getting his gelsium.
There had been two deaths at the University. Witnesses that had seen the bodies had sent the relevant information to the correct people.
Those correct people, of course, were in the Church.
Priest V'ald'imir had informed the priesthood what these people had reported. They had succumbed to H'ronmeer's Curse and had chosen to take their own lives. It was an ironic fate that they would suffer the disease that plagued Dea'vars, but any sympathy was lost when they chose to take their own lives. Life was a sacred thing, and to end one's own life was never acceptable.
"It would seem H'ronmeer is not pleased with the professors," Priest Ov'id remarked upon hearing this.
"It is nothing short of divine justice," Priest V'ald'imir replied. "They contracted the disease that they tried to blame us for. I wonder how they are taking it."
Priest He'mor found himself nodding his agreement. The meeting with the University administrators and the Manhunters hadn't gone the way that they had hoped. The University hadn't backed down from protecting one of their own, and even the government wasn't forcing them to issue a retraction for the words of Professor J'onzz. They merely had to apologize for his outburst, nothing more. That was completely unacceptable. Even worse, they were forbidden from performing the sacred rites to further please H'ronmeer. So much damage had been done in that one interview…
"And what progress have we made towards the J'onzz men?" Priest Ov'id asked.
"I have spoken to Officer J'onzz's partner, Officer Da'vizz" Priest He'mor was quick to answer. "He is sympathetic to our cause, I believe. He was quite shocked to learn of the duplicitous nature of Officer J'onzz."
"Do you believe this will harm their working relationship?"
"We will find out shortly. Officer Da'vizz was most distraught."
"And where are we with Professor J'onzz?" Priest Ov'id then asked.
A few heads turned to regard one another. Priest He'mor could already detect the change in demeanor. No doubt their head priest had detected this as well.
"To be transparent, there isn't much that can be done," one of the priests, Priest J'ren, responded then. "It seems that Professor J'onzz is not widely acceptable, even amongst the university staff. His mercurial attitude has done much to ostracize himself, his blasphemous research notwithstanding."
"Then it shouldn't take much to discredit him," Priest Ov'id proclaimed. "The groundwork has already been laid."
"Where does one go when one is already at the bottom?" Priest J'ren retorted. "There is no question as to his intelligence. He is regarded as a genius, even amongst the academic community. His own behavior keeps him isolated. From a personal perspective, he is immune. From a professional perspective, there is no attacking him in regard to his intelligence. Any of his work that could be used to our benefit has been sealed and removed from the public consciousness. Exposing it at this time would do more harm than good as it would open an avenue of thought for those who could be swayed to radical thought."
That was troubling to learn. Professor J'onzz was seemingly immune to any further harm to his reputation. Releasing his controversial research would not help them as it would only spur greater interest into his work. There were already people that were looking to part ways with their religious obligations; releasing an alternative view, no matter how wrong it was, would only give greater encouragement for them to ignore the Church's teachings. This could only elevate Professor J'onzz's standing.
"I believe further attention directed towards Professor J'onzz would not work out the way we would hope," Priest He'mor eventually said. "We may only empower his stance, and that is something we cannot afford."
"Perhaps you are right," Priest Ov'id reluctantly agreed. "Which leads us back to our primary concern. The University has unfortunately named this Curse after H'ronmeer. They now have two of their own who have become infected. Without a doubt, there will be more. I assume the Manhunters are trying to keep the details quiet, yes?"
"They are," Priest V'ald'imir confirmed, "which is their standard procedure when conducting investigations."
"Then it seems there is a story that needs to be reported by the media. I highly suggest we let those friendly to us know about this."
There were nods of agreement. Satisfied with this gesture, Priest Ov'id then continued, "Which brings us to the next concern: the suspension of our holy duties." There was a look of disgruntlement that was on the head priest's face, one that was reflected in the faces of all the other priests as well.
"This cannot be allowed!" one of the other priests declared. "It is our sworn duty to ensure the proper sacraments are made to honor H'ronmeer. Without them, the people will falter. Their faith will dwindle. H'ronmeer himself would be displeased to not receive the adoration he rightfully deserves!"
"Agreed," Priest Ov'id responded. "However, we cannot help our congregation if the government is going to ensure the rites are suspended. Performing the rites in our sanctuaries is not an option."
"Then how can we proceed?" Priest J'ran pressed.
"We do as we did in times long forgotten. There weren't always churches and cathedrals on Mars. In time en memoria, our order traveled this red planet and spread the wisdom and blessings of H'ronmeer. So that it was, so shall it be. We will reach out to our congregation and assist them through these times of turmoil, when faith is more important than ever. We will ensure the faithful are rewarded for believing in us."
Priest He'mor hid a grimace. The thought of walking through the city, offering the rites to honor H'ronmeer was not an enticing one. Already, it was tiresome to perform the sermons in a filled cathedral, fulfilling hundreds of rites at a time. Doing so on such a smaller scale with greater frequency would be laborious.
Yet, what choice did they have?
The clicking sounds filled the room. It had been a constant sound ever since J'onn's brother, Ma'alefa'ak, had given Jos'seph the Kallifa Box. Jos'seph had been shifting the little tiles on its sides, testing them, organizing them.
M'yri'ah had never seen such a toy before, but her husband had assured her it was one that he himself had played with as a boy. It was designed to help the development of telepathic abilities. The seemingly nonsensical box would frustrate the user and they would unintentionally reach out with their minds for answers. When in the presence of one that knew how to solve the box, the answers would come to them. She had seen this in action when Jos'seph made further progress with J'onn present than when he wasn't. Her husband had sat in his favorite chair, watching his son fuss over the toy, a small knowing smile on his face. Whenever Jos'seph's frustrations seemed to reach their peak, suddenly he would make progress, much to the boy's delight.
The very sight warmed her heart.
At the moment, J'oe was also trying to help, as little as he contributed. From where she sat on the couch, M'yri'ah watched her children fumble with it. As far as she could tell, one side of the box was complete, possibly a second and third. A fourth was partially complete, leaving two more sides that required attention. It would not be now, but perhaps later at night when the boys made further progress.
As much as she wanted to keep watching her sons, M'yri'ah felt her thoughts drift off. What had once been an assignment that her husband had been given, it was now threatening to harm so many people. J'onn told her what he could, though she knew he was leaving out things so as not to frighten her. In Martian society, the wife was expected to obey her husband in this regard.
And so she did, though she wished J'onn would tell her more. It was like he was keeping a secret from her when they did little of that. At least, she thought they didn't.
But then Ma'alefa'ak had come over unexpectedly and J'onn detected a shared history between them. She had kept a secret from him, one she had forgotten about. She had feared what her husband's reaction would have been from learning of it, but thankfully he had taken it in stride. True, he had been troubled by it, but he did not seem to let it affect his relationship with her.
Perhaps that was more due to H'ronmeer's Curse. She now knew that was the assignment J'onn had been given, and the fact a resolution had yet to be found was weighing on him. It was worsening, that much was certain.
How she wished it would be over.
Also worrying was J'onn forbidding her and the children from participating in the rites during H'ronmeer's Holy Week. It had been ingrained in her from a young age that it was something that must be done. However, J'onn had found a link between this curse and the rites, so it was justified that they not participate. It still weighed on her, but she knew it was for a good cause.
Evening was approaching. Preparations for dinner would need to begin. With a mental sigh, M'yri'ah stood up from the couch and began making her way to the kitchen. With everything that was going on, J'onn would need something to raise his spirits. Perhaps she would make his favorite dish. Yes, that would be good.
Now, did she have all the proper ingredients? She believed so, perhaps she was a little low on one or two of the spices, but she could make adjustments. Now then—
"I did it! I did it!"
M'yri'ah paused in her step, turning around back to her children. There was a winding sound, the two boys bouncing where they sat. Jos'seph had sat the Kallifa box on the floor. Aborting her trip to the kitchen, M'yri'ah returned to her sons, crouching down between them.
"Congratulations, Jos'seph," she congratulated him warmly. She honestly was surprised that he managed to complete the box without J'onn being present. Perhaps her son had gotten farther along than she had thought. "You have done well. Your father will be most impressed."
"I helped too! I helped too!" J'oe shouted urgently. He did not want to be left out of this moment. The boy's mother gently smiled at him in response.
"Of course you did."
The winding sound was growing louder now. It was like there were gears and springs tightly wound that were trying to move against great resistance. Lines formed along the edges of the Kallifa Box, thin at first. Slowly, they grew wider, painstakingly so.
The top of the box raised up, gaining speed in comparison to the rest of the other sides. The ones to the left and right spread outward. The face of the box began to lower. The sound of the gears and springs grew louder, but now a high-pitched tune was playing. Odd, it could play music? J'onn hadn't mentioned that.
The music itself was more like a tune, one played by a single instrument. The pi'anna, she believed. The note register was of a higher scale though.
She could have sworn she knew the song that was being played. It was familiar, though she couldn't place her finger on it. Its beat was slow, slower than what it should have been. In fact, she could have sworn it was something she heard from church, usually during the…last…
The Kallifa Box then fully opened, revealing its insides. There were a number of herbs present, releasing an overtly sweet smell. Small stems were blooming with yellow and green petals. M'yri'ah recognized them as the tsuiste plant. Though she recognized it, she could not remember what its main purpose. It had been some time since she spent time in a nursery, where each and every plant was grown for a purpose.
However, her attention was directed to the middle of the little garden of tsuitste plants. There was a symbol there, the top of it pointed, the bottom rounded. There were two circles a third of the way from the top, a grid of small squares closer to the bottom. It…it looked like a Martian skull…
No, that was indeed the skull symbol for death. That she didn't need to remember. What was that symbol doing in there? And the tsuiste plants. Was there a reason for this? Why would J'onn's family place such things inside of a toy?
No, not family. Ma'alefa'ak.
That's when she sensed it. Right before her, she could sense the opening of minds, the first sign of an awakening telepath. Every Martian knew that feeling. Much to M'yri'ah's surprise, she sensed it with her two boys.
"Mom," Jos'seph suddenly said, his tone frightened. "I feel weird. I feel like—"
He suddenly stopped speaking and let out a sharp cry. He hunched over, his hands grabbing at his head. J'oe fell over, screaming and crying as he too clutched at his head.
It hit M'yri'ah with the full force of a crashing hover car. Jos'seph and J'oe were awakening into their telepathic gifts. But…it was much too early for that! While Jos'seph was nearing the age where he would need to be isolated, J'oe was nowhere near that time. But now their minds were being assaulted with the sudden influx of thoughts that were coming from all around them. Their neighbors, the people on the streets, the people in the buildings next door.
Immediately, M'yri'ah reached out with her mind, placing up every mental block that she could. She instantly felt the fear and pain her children felt from the assault of thoughts attacking them, though no fault of their own. She shielded their minds from the deluge as best as she could.
She reached her hands out to touch her children, offering them physical comfort. Their cries had fallen to whimpers for now. Already, M'yri'ah could feel the strain on her mind as she shielded them. She needed to activate their home's privacy settings. There were thought barriers designed to isolate the domicile from the rest of the world. Once she activated them...
Yet, she could feel just how great the gifts her children had. Their minds were continuously expanding. Dear H'ronmeer! She had never felt such depth in anyone's telepathy before. J'onn's was perhaps greater, though he seldom revealed just how powerful his mind was. Their children had the potential to rival him!
She increased her focus on her children, unable to physically move to activate the thought barrier. Her first priority was doing whatever it took to protect her children. She would have to hold out for as long as it took. Once J'onn arrived, he could do what needed to be done. They would need to leave Dea'vars and go to the J'onzz ancestral home. There they could train their minds.
Yet, it troubled her that their telepathy would suddenly develop as it had. She had never heard of it happening this way. Something was wrong. Something was very wrong.
Being involved in government had a way of warping one's own perspective. A macroview over the world was necessary, often coming at the expense of the microview of the individual. There were times where this was indeed necessary, but that was hardly a comfort to those that were suffering.
And Mars was suffering. Dea'vars was only the beginning. Reports of H'ronmeer's Curse were beginning to come in. From the Amazonis Planitia to the Elysium Mods, from as far north as the Vastitas Borealis to the southern Noachis Terra, cities and villages were reporting the disease that was ravaging Dea'vars. There was nothing from the poles, though communication with the pole dwellers wasn't exactly a priority.
Early estimates reported the number of infected surpassing a thousand. Deaths had yet to be confirmed, but the projections based off of the numbers in Dea'vars didn't create a good picture. What was perhaps most concerning was the acceleration in time between victims contracted the disease to their fiery end. The first cases had first been timed at a day.
The latest cases were in hours.
There was no point in concealing it any longer. The Manhunters' investigation into the disease had failed. The medical community was at a loss as to how to treat the disease, another failure. The Church was calling for greater obedience to worship their gods, even as there was a growing link between their sermons and the epidemic—now a pandemic. Tensions were growing between the various institutes when all the people wanted to know was what was being done to combat this crisis.
Sadly, those answers were not forthcoming either.
Unity was needed to combat this. A call for cooperation from Mars' inhabitants was deemed the appropriate action. When society's leading institutions were failing to be leaders, something else needed to fill the void they inadvertently created. There was power in numbers and what greater number was there than the general populace?
So it was with this in mind that R'yon was chosen to make the announcement. Standing behind a podium, recording devices aimed at him, the government official appeared to be staring straight ahead, a frozen statue.
Then he shifted his weight on his feet, and began. "People of Mars, it is with a heavy heart that I make this announcement. There is an illness that festers within our red planet. Many of you have witnessed it first-hand; many of you have suffered a loss at its hands. Many have wanted answers that were simply not forthcoming.
"At this time, we are experiencing a pandemic the likes of which Mars has never seen. All one has to do is watch their local media programs to see the numbers of those infected climbing without pause. Even now, we are working to combat this disease, learning what we can of those who first came into contact with this devastating monster.
"Unfortunately, there have been those who have not acted in the best interest of Mars. There are those that advocate for their own self-interest. I will not expose these people and the institutions that they represent. It matters not in the long run. I tell this to the people of Mars so that they apply the appropriate pressure for these misguided people to drop their self-interest and work for the betterment of Mars. The people of Mars deserve this.
"During the investigation and research into this disease, it has been hypothesized that we were at one time in the earliest stages of a curse. It has been centuries since the last such curse event affected Mars. Though I am loath to give credence to such a hypothesis, at this time I cannot argue that this is not a curse.
"So it is with a heavy heart that I declare this crisis a curse. In light of this being H'ronmeer's Holy Week, I am forced to name this pestilence H'ronmeer's Curse. In time, I hope this is changed, an overreaction to something straining our great society.
"Now is not a time for division; it is a time for each and every Martian to come together. Our unity is a greater force than anything this universe has ever seen. It led us to settling this planet, mastering its harsh conditions when little else could. We have thrived where others had failed. There is nothing that cannot be accomplished if we stand as one.
"But we have to be that: one. I ask you, the people of Mars, join me and all of the others that fight H'ronmeer's Curse. Together, we can and will defeat it. Together, we will not bow and be cowed.
"Together, united, we will show the might and determination of Mars."