“Eren!” His eyes opened with a start again. This time the professor's voice was less intrusive, but persistent nonetheless. It took a bit of effort to lift his face off the mattress and sit up. He pushed the hair away from his face to see a mix of fluorescent and natural light streaming in from the open door. There was a humanoid silhouette in a chair before him, that grew more defined as his vision sharpened. It was Silas. He must have let himself into the room. "Good Morning Eren." Eren steadied himself. "What time is it? Good Morning." "I will wait for you outside," said Silas. "Get ready quick, we have to begin early " It took ten minutes for him to wash in a sink, pick a shirt, look at a mirror in passing, then rejoin the old man. He wore socks over his feet this time, and they retraced their steps back to the underground vault that housed Silas private chamber. "I should have returned this yesterday," Eren held the trinket out before him while walk
A mile away from the mansion, an entourage of eight identical, imposing black wagons approached the building in a long, gleaming and resilient line of steel. The sixth of these cars carried a man whose deep blue eyes gazed through his window with silent power and an air of dignity, much like a creator looking upon his universe. This man and his entourage were headed for the same location where Silas, Vatican Sol, and Eren now resided. At least in the moment, the three of them were still alone. Eren was seated in a gray colored, relatively small, swivel chair, a few meters away from both Sol and the professor. He was looking at what resembled a map — a flat, broad tablet that displayed a simple, process-low diagram. The other two were looking at the same map on their own portable screens. "This is a rough outline to give us an idea of our position and progress. It can be refined as things get progressively clearer," Vatican Sol said. "The black dot on the far left is you, an
'Go,' Eren thought to himself as he pushed the psycho physical button on the screen. He waited with stiff patience. Nothing. "Silas?" He heard himself call. "Keep your eyes closed," came the professor's voice. His chair made its usual whining sound as he re-entered the room. "Just stay calm, as calm and focused as you can be." "Should I... select it again?" Now Eren could see that even that was impossible as the button had been replaced by a circular, loading icon. "Yes." He clicked the button with his mind's hand, again. Crap, nothing was happening! "Bad news," said a voice suddenly. "What?" both of them asked at the same time. "I can't believe the boy is still awake," Sol blurted, reverting to the more obvious issue. "What is wrong, Sol?" the professor pressed. "The clan head, he came by himself." It was clear that Vatican Sol was deliberately staying calm. For a moment Silas was speechless. Then he finally spoke. "That is... amazing. I half expected it, but stil
NINE MONTHS LATER ‘I told you. They are too sleek to be pushed into admission.’ That was the response he had received from Vatican Sol, when he let him know what had become of the testimony he had filed, on Eren's attack. The Khans, like every other allegation, had rushed it aside as though it were a pesky fly. Well, in some ways it was. Those people... They seemed to have over them and their image, a bulletproof of sorts. And for every witness they could create ten alibis, right there on the spot. At least, Silas thought, the publicity had been useful in some way. But the outcome told him, as it did tell Sol, that their years of investigation would be worthless without some vice-like, undeniable grip on the perpetrators. That way it would be acknowledged, just as it was already long-known, that they deserved what was hopefully coming. And again, Vatican Sol had thought the same exact way. ‘I think the kid is the key,’ The professor could recall him saying.
"Eren, it is a joy to have you back." Vatican Sol's gray hair was growing wild on his temples, so that they stood out like bristles before his ears. Then the same hair crept to the crown of his head in a well-tended, running buzz cut. He was holding the electronic tablet in which they had viewed the 'map' of their plan several months before. He was the only one viewing it now, or whatever was on that screen. "Silas told me when you awoke yesterday. Unfortunately I could not come down at once.” Beside them, a weak sun was casting its gentle rays through the window. The three of them were seated in the professor's study, and Sol's shiny shoes made a scraping sound as they mistakenly grazed the floor. "I have to brief you on your mission," he continued, then,cast a glance in Silas's direction before adding, "But I think there's some other information you will be needing first.” Eren turned to Silas, who had coughed lightly. He had a small pile of about four clean sheets of
Somewhere in the same city, a great man stroked his worn, silver ring as he disappeared into his own thoughts. He had a deeply furrowed forehead that when he frowned, it gave him a hawk-like appearance. In the same moment the footsteps of two well-polished shoes approached him rather slowly. The great man turned to look. Then he looked away just as soon, smiling with quiet recognition. His mansion was the only place where he could walk around unprotected, and thankfully there were countless acres to walk. Here he could be just a man, a man who took walks, and fished, and drank tea. Anywhere beyond the boundary that separated them from the ravening outer world, the Winchesters were surely a target, for the downtrodden, bitter, vengeful, and desperate, members of society. "Jared," He called to the man. Only when the man had got close enough did he respond, "Yes, my Lord." The man had blotched, blonde hair that was thick for his age. He had cut it low at the sides, lea
There was no workout gear, or props, or anything fanciful and 'safe' in Silas's gym room. Fortunately the interface provided detailed workout instructions. For Eren, most of his workouts were calisthenics, including pull ups, pushups, squats, and sit-ups. There was a voiceover detailing the instructions in sets with increasing intensity. On Silas's departure, Eren sat slouched on a bench in the vacant space. The floors had a thin layer of dust over them, giving the gray marble a beige aspect. He closed his eyes for about ten minutes, breathing through his mouth, slowly. There were images flashing through his mind in that moment, some of which he was willing to see and others which he wasn't. One of them was his mother. Eren thought of her cursing, her smile, the way she had called him 'Tiger.' That was... gone. He opened his eyes and saw the dusty floor. Fuck! Sometimes, he would try to pick her up and place her in a good place, a better place where she could serve as
Eren looked out the window for the entire ride. It was a long ride, and uneventful, with Silas and an aide in the front, while he sat in the back of the luxurious car. Now and then, Silas made small idle talk, and sometimes he caught himself with a faint smile. In the overhead mirror the aide's tan face could be seen, peering at the road. He wore a suit like Eren, only without the extra torture of a tie. In addition to the 'sharp' cut suit and black tie, Eren had trimmed, combed, and patted-down his hair so that the curls were less wild. It was the first time in roughly a year that he had done that much grooming. And it was the first time in roughly a year that he was stepping out of the four walls of a building. He took a breather, watching the blur of greenery, concrete and metal that passed them. Many minutes later, they were riding through Winchester territory, which was a display of splendor and vastness. On either side of them large buildings were splayed out.