Chương 155: B3. 9.2 - The Most Suspicious Person

Everett Hamza (Emcee) Everett shifted to the window so that Dario could sit between him and Myra, at the center of the group. It was briefing time now that they were complete. As Dario got in the van, he told them that there might be problems. What could it be? Did Dario find out more about Pino? It wouldn't be about the possible traitor in their group, right? Dario wouldn't discuss it here. Not with Reo listening in. Everett looked at the headrest of Reo's chair. Are you really a traitor?

His conversation yesterday with Dario came to mind. Dario had left Cindy's early, supposedly to contact the Professor about Pino and ask for pills for Erind and boosters for the mission. But it turned out that Dario waited for Everett to separate from the group to talk with him.

"What is it?" Everett had asked, following Dario into an alley. Everybody else had gone their separate ways. It was odd that Dario singled him out to discuss something important. Dario must've trusted him more than he had thought.

"What do you think of Reo?"

"Huh? What are you—? Do you think he's lying about meeting an Adumbrae?" Everett wasn't too comfortable with Reo's story. Out of all of them, it was odd that the Adumbrae chose to meet with Reo. Couldn't they have picked a better messenger? Dario nodded.

"His story raises too many questions. If I were Pino looking for pawns, I'd target Myra. Reo should be their last choice because his heart no longer seems to be with our cause. Have you observed it?" Everett scratched the back of his head.

"I don't want to talk behind Reo's back, but he doesn't really keep it a secret that he hates going on missions. Man's depressed, I think. I can't blame him. We all have heavy burdens."

"And that's what the Adumbrae targets."

"What?" Everett clutched his chest, feeling the shape of his artificial Core.

"Can we turn into an Adumbrae with this thing on our body?"

"I'm not talking about seeding. Regular manipulation. Reo wants out of this life for some reason."

"He's burnt out. He's very different compared to when I first met him. I… Can't you do anything for him?"

"I'm not forcing anyone to join missions," said Dario. Not exactly true, right there. Dario could be very forceful without directly saying it. He had even squeezed Deen and Erind to meld with Cores. Everett could remember a few times that Dario muscled them with words to do certain missions. It shouldn't be a big deal; they did sign up for this after all. But Deen and Erind were different. Everett wasn't comfortable with how they got roped into this thing.

"I don't mean that," said Everett.

"Can't you remove his Core? Then maybe make him drink some chemicals to forget about all of this? The Professor has something like that, right?"

"You know it's not possible. We're in this for the long run. Unfortunately, Reo can't handle the marathon. He may be looking for other ways to leave the race."

"No beating around the bush, man. Are you thinking that Reo's gone to the Adumbrae for help? To remove his Core? That's crazy!"

"Perhaps it is. But Reo has been unstable as of late. Who knows what sweet words the Adumbrae sprinkled to get his cooperation? They could've offered to remove his Core."

"He's not going to… fall… for that…" Everett trailed off, wondering if he really believed what he said. The Reo of old would've thrown hands with any Adumbrae trying to trick him. But the present Reo might just want to escape his life. Everett wasn't sure what had happened to Reo to turn him into such a depressed guy.

"Do note that this is a mere suspicion," said Dario.

"I don't have any concrete evidence. A mere gut feeling. Reo's story simply doesn't sit right with me." Everett had suggested spying on Reo during tonight's meeting; Johann could probably provide them with bugs they could hide at Reo's apartment while he was away at work. It was a surefire way of listening firsthand to Reo's conversation with Pino.

"We can put an end to suspecting this or that thing," Everett added.

"It doesn't sit right with me to think like this about Reo."

"We won't surveil Reo's apartment," said Dario.

"The Adumbrae would expect us to do something like it. They'll be prepared, and they will not continue this mission if it appears that we're springing a trap on them even though we aren't. If the Adumbrae are telling the truth, we need to get our hands on the PCMs' data."

"Okay, so what if they're lying? What if this is all a setup to capture all of us? The Adumbrae don't even need Reo for this, when you think about it."

"We have a boosted Deen. And I have a backup plan for this, don't worry. If anyone's springing a trap, it will be us. But I'm not going to tell the others about it in case they're a spy."

"It's not only Reo you suspect? Who else? Myra?" It made sense for Myra to approach the Adumbrae for help finding her sister. Everett had also assumed that Kelsey was with Red Hood or Blanchette, or whoever that werewolf Adumbrae was. Would Myra exchange the whole group for her sister? The Adumbrae most definitely didn't have good plans for them.

"Not Myra," said Dario.

"She wouldn't want her sister anywhere near Adumbrae. She's supposed to save her sister from Adumbrae, not have her join them."

"Ah, that makes sense. Who then? Johann? It can't be Deen and Erind because they're new."

"Johann… I trust him to some extent. Deen, on the other hand, had shown herself sympathetic to Adumbrae. She was swayed because an Adumbrae saved her."

"I don't think it's her, man." Everett slowly shook his head, unsure of his own words. His monkey brain better not be influenced by Deen's beauty.

"She got kidnapped by the 2Ms before we headed to their warehouses. It couldn't have been a setup to plant a mole in our group. Too stretchy stretch."

"In any case, keep your eyes and ears open," said Dario.

"We are walking into a trap, and we still don't know much about it. Our friends might be enemies." This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. Today, during their meeting at Mama Maria's Pizzeria, Reo laid his concerns on the table—the Adumbrae were going to get him as revenge for the double-cross. His worries sounded genuine, but Everett couldn't help replay his conversation with Dario. Was Reo really faking it? Had he given up fighting Adumbrae?

Reo could be laying the groundwork for his disappearance, making it appear as if the Adumbrae would kidnap him.

"What's the big problem, great leader?" Reo asked, snapping Everett out of thoughts.

"We got a lot of shit on our shitty plate already. We don't need another serving of shit."

"The Adumbrae attacks," said Dario.

"Another wave of it. I'm sure you've heard on the news about rumors of Adumbrae. I had received intel from the Professor that the BID is preparing to publicly announce it."

"The hell?" Reo exclaimed.

"Those were really fucking real? I hoped it was just a bear that escaped the zoo and snorted a pound of coke."

"There's no bear at the La Esperanza Zoo," Erind commented behind Everett, too quiet for the others to hear.

"Why did the BID abandon the keeping-a-lid-on-it plan?" Myra asked.

"An Unripe Manifestation appeared in the downtown area an hour ago," Dario said.

"Specifically, at the intersection of Mulberry and Eleventh."

"Just an hour ago?" Everett felt his pockets for his phone. He had a mini-heart attack when there was no rectangular shape on the sides of his pants, before remembering that he had left his phone at home. There was the risk of accidentally leaving it at the site of the mission, so he decided not to bring it. He wasn't going to turn it on during the mission anyway. And leaving his phone at home would make it seem he never left. He assumed that everyone else did the same.

"I bet my phone's full of text alerts," Everett said.

"What happened, Dario?" Deen asked, her voice full of concern for the innocents. Everett couldn't accept that she was working with Adumbrae.

"An Adumbrae popped in the middle of the street and threw cars around," Dario said.

"Several employees working the night shift are dead. Many have also managed to record the attack. Videos circulate on the internet. Too widespread to control."

"So, the government's just going to roll with it," said Myra.

"That's it for the mayor's reelection," said Everett.

"His political career isn't going to survive this one."

"What about the Adumbrae?" Deen asked.

"Did the police kill it? The National Guard?"

"A BID agent was nearby," said Dario.

"Casualties would've been much higher if the BID weren't already in the city. It is a grim incident, but this presents us with a silver lining. Police, Guardsmen, and BID agents are investigating the attack site, far from where we'll dig."

"Less BID agents in the tunnels," said Reo.

"I'm starting to like our chances here. On second thought, I still don't like it."

"The Adumbrae," Erind said.

"Who sent it? The 2Ms, like the first time? Are they back in the city?"

"They gotta be crazy to return into the city with BID agents here," Myra said.

"It might be a natural seeding," said Dario.

"Stress levels among the populace are high, and the amount of Adumbrae in La Esperanza might disrupt Eloyce fields, making a conducive environment for seeding. That's why the government is distributing the colored pills. But that's not our problem for tonight. We should focus on—""It might not be a problem now," Erind cut in.

"But it'll be, eventually. This will draw the attention of the Corebrings." Her voice started to tremble. Everett half-turned to Erind. It was dark inside the car, but the streetlights outside illuminated her scared face. Only now did he realize the gravity of what she had said. Erind touched her chest.

"The Corebrings won't care for the Washington Protocol if they see lots of Adumbrae in one place. They could already be on their way here. What if they find us? They'll see our artificial Cores and…"

"And will be pretty pissed," said Reo with a rough chuckle.

"We're gonna get spit roasted by Corebrings and Adumbrae. Add in the BID, the PCM. Who else? I can count the police separately. All of our holes will be—""Shut it, Reo," Myra snapped.

"Our secrecy stuff is to avoid the Corebrings," Erind said.

"But because of things out of our control, they'll probably come here. What do we do, Dario? Did the Professor say anything?"

"This possibility has occurred to us," replied Dario.

"After this mission, we'll have to lie low. Even if the Corebrings won't come, we still need to keep a low profile given what's happening to the city."

"Does the Professor have something like a detector that'll alert us to Corebring presence?" Erind asked.

"Would the Corebring know that we're around? Like, our Cores have some connection. Maybe the real Corebrings can sense it as well."

"The answer is 'yes' to your first question," said Dario.

"But we can't bring the equipment here in time. I'm doubtful if the Professor would even allow those machines to leave the labs. They're too cumbersome to carry around anyway, large enough to fill a backpack. You have to understand that Corebrings who don't want to be detected are very hard to detect."

"That's a shocking revelation," Reo said sarcastically.

"As for your second question, Erind," Dario continued.

"We don't know the answer. It's not something that we can test."

"Well, you can test it," said Reo.

"But it'll be the last test you'll have. Corebrings will be so fucking pissed if they find out."

"Erind's got a point, though," Everett said.

"If we can sort of sense each other's Cores, then Corebrings probably could, too. Do we need to leave the city? I don't want to endanger my family."

"I'll have to consult the Professor about this," Dario said.

"Mission first, got it? We'll stay far away from these new Adumbrae attack sites. The Corebrings won't be instantly here." Dario went over the plan for Deen and Erind's benefit since they were absent during the earlier meeting. Everett unwrapped a calorie-dense protein bar while listening, adding more fuel to his big dinner earlier. He wasn't stocking energy to excavate. How would heating dirt help other than to cook their own group inside the tunnels? It was for a fight.

If unavoidable, he'd really be forced to cook people. Not just any people. BID agents, possibly. Everett didn't know what to think about this. He wasn't sure what he should think. Fighting Adumbrae was one thing. Those monsters were the bad guys. But this? The BID's job was to protect Americans. Their agents had just killed a rampaging Adumbrae earlier. Good guys. Everett was also supposed to fight Adumbrae, not fellow humans. Am I still human? Or will I become a monster if I kill a BID agent?

He slowly chewed his food. The fuck was he thinking about? He should be more concerned with surviving a fight against a BID agent. It was more likely that he'd lose. And he shouldn't think of those brainy, morality-type questions. Dario had told him before that if he thought about things too much, he'd start to doubt himself. Doubt didn't have a place in his heart. This was his choice. He had to do what was necessary. Everett continued to eat a couple more bars while looking out the window.

He feared accidentally using his own body as fuel. Where were they now? Stonehill Street, a street name sign informed him. They were getting close to an entrance to the tunnels that Pino had assured Reo was unguarded. This was the first time he had been to this part of the city. Middle-class homes, neatly kept front yards, working streetlights, and cars in a much better condition than their own half-dead, second-hand vehicle were parked along the streets or up the driveways. Not one soul walked outside.

To be expected since it was already late at night. Everett also guessed that the city had sent out a mass advisory for people to stay indoors, given the Adumbrae attack and all that. Some of the houses still had their lights turned on. An occasional shadow by the window told Emcee the people living here were curious about the van driving by at this hour. I hope nothing bad happens in this mission, Everett thought, opening another protein bar.