Chương 178: Chapter 176 – The Other Wentworth… Friend or Foe?

Friend or Foe?

Elios knew Tut would be tied up with GR for a while. The onboarding process was tedious even when switching jobs within the organization. All of Tut's clearance would change, he would require new security badges, new access codes, new equipment… he sighed, then there would be the barrage of legal agreements, non-compete agreements, NDAs, so much freaking paperwork. He thought, walking over to the safe and removing the envelope.

Elios sat down and pulled the stack of papers attached to the private investigator's report. He looked at the newspaper clippings and documents that came with the report more closely. Each article, posing more questions than screaming answers. What did this version of Wentworth have to gain by stepping into this Wentworth's place? This Wentworth was basically still a kid, just starting out, drowning in student loan debt, his feet barely wet. What advantage would there be to taking over his life?

He knew that if he was going to step into someone else's life, he would pick someone established, with money, power and some advantage. The original Wentworth had the potential to someday become remarkable but was far from it when he died. He was smart, yes, humble beyond a doubt, but his accomplishments were nothing short of extremely ordinary. What would compel someone to assume his identity and work his way up under the original Wentworth banner?

What about his family and friends, didn't they question the existence of Wentworth 2. 0 when he started achieving success? Surely they would know that it was far more than a coincidence that their Wentworth and this Wentworth had identical origins. Why had no one come forward? Elios grabbed a pen from the holder on his desk and began writing on his pad. Why? He wrote, then underlined it three times. Why hasn't anyone ever called him out as an imposter? Then he decided it was easier to just make a list…

Find family and friends. He underlined that, his mind churning out question after question. He stopped abruptly as he heard someone approaching his door. He quickly turned the notepad upside down, then stashed it and the envelope into his top drawer, before grabbing a large report from his inbox. When the gentle knock on the door frame reached his ears, he looked up to see Wentworth standing there. Did I summon the demon? He silently mused.

He quickly did a visual of his desk to make sure everything was out of sight before telling him to come in.

"Got a minute?" Wentworth asked, shutting the door behind him. Elios put the pen he was holding on top of the report and waited for him to sit.

"What do you need, Franklin?"

"Just figured I would touch base with you about the teleport," he said.

"Without it, being up and running everything is at a standstill."

"Oh, it should be fixed within the next day or two. The part I am waiting for is on its way, once it gets here I will start working on it immediately," Elios said, taking in a deep breath.

"Once the part gets here and the machine is completely reassembled and calibrated, we can get things back on track."

"So did Mordak give you the plan?" Wentworth asked.

"I just want to make sure you are up to speed on things."

"Yes, he told me about the reactivation of Operation Everybody Needs a Friend." He sighed, shaking his head.

"Franklin, I can't lie, I think this whole operation is the wrong way to go," Elios said plainly.

"It didn't work the way it was intended to the first time around. Why does he think the results will be any better the second?"

"You'd have to ask him that question, Elios," Wentworth said, shaking his head in disgust.

"It was because of that stupid plan I lost everyone. My parents, my sister, my friends. I was one of the lucky ones working out of a medical center. Most everyone contracted it on the first wave; they didn't stand a chance. No one realized how quickly it would mutate from its original strain. It was almost like it was mocking us… we would find a treatment for one strain and then it would mutate to another.

By the time the third wave rolled around, we were better able to prevent its spread, but by then it was too late." If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

"You lost everyone?" Elios asked, shooting him a sympathetic glance, while making a mental note about Wentworth's family. The most important question is, was it this Wentworth's family that was dead or was it the original Wentworth's family that had succumbed? Elios thought.

"I lost my wife and kids in the third wave. It was horrible," he said before asking, "so your parents and sister? Do you have any other siblings out there, or was it just the two of you?"

"What difference does that make, Elios? If you must know no other siblings. My sister was just a kid, my parents watched her go, then my mother, my father…" he paused, getting choked up, "well my father couldn't take losing his 'girls' so he hung himself in the garage."

"Sorry, man, I didn't mean to cross boundaries or hit nerves," Elios said, sitting back in his chair.

"That was a terrible time for everyone," he said, his gaze going from the distraught man to the window.

"So many lost, so many needlessly dead. If containment measures had been taken when things went sideways well…" he paused, turning back to Wentworth.

"Well maybe the end result would not have been so utterly catastrophic."

"Well, I can't say I disagree with you on that one, Elios," Wentworth said, coldly.

"Poor choices were made on how the whole thing was handled right from the start. Mordak should have listened to the experts before releasing that death sentence. I know he did not believe it would impact anyone other than those he was targeting. He knew better than the experts, doesn't he always?" He shook his head.

"This is what happens when people with no true medical training or scientific background start making decisions that require a high level of expertise. Hell, Mordak doesn't understand basic physiology, let alone a contagion of that magnitude." He scoffed.

"Now he wants to do the same thing to a species he knows nothing about. What if it mutates again and reinfects the Goblin population in the process? Then what?"

"So, what are you proposing here, Franklin?" Elios asked, his interest now piqued.

"To be honest Elios, I don't know. I know I have not been able to replicate the results that Mordak was hoping to see with the modified nanobots." He scoffed.

"But without access to a control group of the target species it makes it difficult to understand what exactly the modified bots will, or won't do."

"So are you proposing we round up a bunch of fairies and elves to use for test subjects here Franklin?" Elios asked, unsure of what Wentworth's strategy would actually be.

"I had a hybrid, but he had a heart attack on me before I could see what the bots would do to his internal structures. I had an elf and then that jackass Trula went and killed the thing, so I couldn't run any tests there either," Wentworth hissed.

"I don't know how we can even obtain another test subject with the teleport being out of service right now," he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"All I know is if I don't give Mordak what he is looking for ASAP, I may as well take a flying leap off a building like Jethro did."

"Kidnapping unsuspecting fairies would be an all out declaration of war, does Mordak realize that?" Elios asked, raising his eyebrows.

"Right now, it is my understanding that they send our guys back as they catch them. It's been almost like a game for most of the agents. Some of them deliberately get caught just so they can come home. We add random kidnappings to the mix… I'm not sure it stay so simple."

"Releasing a weapon of potentially mass destruction isn't an act of war?" Wentworth asked, giving Elios a confused glance.

"One way or the other we are declaring war on at least two different worlds that we know little to nothing about, for what? To further stroke Mordak's ego? To add to his idea of what?" He paused trying to find an appropriate phrasing, "divine inheritance?" Wentworth said, standing up suddenly.

"I mean really Elios, look what he has done here? He has poisoned the water, eliminated funding to every social safety net in existence, convinced people that he is the all knowing savior and will save us from ourselves simply because he can trace his family lineage back to the founding of Fallotopia? What's he gonna do once he kills them? Eat them? Will they be the replacement food source, because we are quickly running out of options. Nothing will grow anymore Elios…nothing!"

"Franklin, calm down before you have a stroke or something," Elios said, rolling his eyes.

"So what are you saying Franklin? If you are suggesting what I think you are, you'll get us both brought up on treason charges. That wouldn't end well for either of us."

"If either of us works alone, you're right, but if we pool our resources and work together we could take over those other worlds. One for me, one for you. We could make them better, stronger, and take Mordak down before he destroys everything." Elios' eyes widened. He had never considered something as bold as that. The more he thought about it, the more he liked it.

"You've got my attention," he said, giving Wentworth or whoever he was his full attention.