Z-Virus (9 page)

"Master, there are three rules and three protocols. Rule number one, an assassin must be smart. Rule number two, responsibilities toward the tasks are first priorities. Rule number 3, teamwork is needed when in times of emergency. Protocol number one, liars will be executed. Protocol number two, traitor will be executed. Protocol number 3, breaking all the rules will be executed."

"Very good agent fourteen." Praised the masked man.

"So, agent twelve, tell me why I shouldn’t be executing you?"

"Master, I didn’t do anything wrong!" said Viana.

"You have failed me agent twelve, loads of times. You do your work on your own, you broke the rules by killing innocents I didn’t ask you to, you set up your own base and army without my permission, you’ve never reported me back of the mission I gave you and you tried to kill agent fourteen when I want you to get her to see me."

"Then so be it. Die!" Viana pointed her gun right onto her master’s masked. But all that effort was useless against her master. Viana was impaled on her chest with a spear from one of the statue in the room. The masked man could control metal at his own will. He lifted the spear in mid air still with Viana stuck on it and shoved it to the nearest wall. Viana was hanging dead with blood dripping fast to the floor below. I couldn’t bear to see it. To die in such pain and agony, I would rather be dead in one shot in the head. I saw Claire seemed pale.

"Now, now agent fourteen. My favorite student. It seemed only yesterday that I have carried you home with me. I was a great father to you in helping you grow up to be a perfect young woman. Am I right?"

"Yes Master!" Answered Claire.

"There is something I want you to do for me now agent fourteen," said the masked man.

"For you, I would do anything Master!"

"Your mission now is to kill the man and the little girl you came here with. They’re interfering with our plan."

"Master? What do you mean? They’re my friends. And what plan are you talking about?"

Sarah was very scared. I hold her closed to mine behind the massive pillar. This is not what a little girl should experienced right now but the world has changed. It was not like it used to. 

"Don’t act dumb fourteen, do as what you are told or do you want to end up like agent twelve?"

"I don’t understand why. Please I can’t do this Master."

"Then I’ll just have to explain it to you. You and  agent twelve are just my…. puppets."

"You used us?!" Said Claire in disbelieved.

"Exactly. Twelve was trying to get away from my sight, that’s why she worked alone. She knew about my plan to take over the world so she tried many things to stab me behind my back, she set up her own secret base and army and even stole one of the formula that I use to control those things. I must say she has done a very good job, but not good enough." The masked man went upstairs and stopped when he reached the top floor. "But you fourteen, was very easy to brainwashed. You were very soft like a newborn baby, your soul so delicate that it can be easily tarnished." Claire was breaking up and enraged, she took out her guns and point it toward the masked man.

"Who are you? Only a coward hides behind a mask." Said Claire.

"Coward? Are you talking about your father?" The masked man replied.

"My father was not a coward! He dedicated his life in growing me up! Don’t you dare talking about him like that in front of me!"

"Let me tell you a secret fourteen." The atmosphere seemed to change from cold to painful memories. I had to stay quite as I have to look after Sarah. Claire has bigger problem to deal with. I wish I could help but I just couldn’t. Not yet. Not now.

"Your father’s name was not Jonathan Johnson. His real name was Dr. Richard Ross." I was kind of shock of what I’ve just heard. I did not know how would that affect Claire.

"You’re lying! My father was a dentist not a scientist!"

"Well my dear, he actually did both job wonderfully. He was a good actor. All of that was just to protect you. Don’t you realize why your father always didn’t have time for you in the evening and sometimes in the weekends, when family should be together? Dentists don’t take patients in the evening you know, he was busy toying with his experiments with Dr. O’Neil. He wore mask in the day playing Jonathan Johnson and tore it off in the evening as mad scientist."

"No! I don’t believe you!"

"Oh! The night he was killed, that was part of my plan as well. I paid those criminals to kill your father because he had what I wanted. The formula."

"Shut up!" Claire started shooting the masked man repetitively, devastated what she was just heard. She knelt down weakened bye the truth as all the bullets has been emptied from her guns. Unfortunately, those shots didn’t hit the masked man. The bullets stopped in mid air just before it reached the masked man.

"Fourteen, fourteen. You still have a lot more to learn on how to control your emotion. It destroys you if you let it overwhelms you."

"I am not one of your tools anymore. I quit! Once a coward will always be a coward. Show yourself and fight like a real man!"

"Very well. Just don’t regret it later." The man opened his mask slowly and the person behind it was;

"You should be honor to witness this, I'm your Master, Dr. Victor Lockhart!"

Chapter 19 

Planetary Devastation

"Victor? I thought you were . . ." Claire stopped in search of a right word and madly confused.

"Dead?" Victor continued. "My dear, it was easy to fake up a story. Like how your father faked up his own personality."

"You aren’t normal are you?" Claire said.

"What made you think of that?"

"You’re eyes. They’re red. How are you able to sustain your consciousness?"

"Oh, I almost forgot about that. Well, where should I start? Hmm, let’s see. The night your father was killed, I took the formula he had on how to create this mighty medicine that can cure any type of disease on earth with Dr. O’Neil. I used the formula to create a reversed effect on which this Nano-M does not fight the disease but instead multiplying when it reacts with the virus. The day before they officially launch the test on that sick dog, I sabotaged the Nano-M with my new evil foundation. I experimented with it, and found another new formula, which gives me a new power, enhanced all of my senses and the ability to manipulate metal. I can say that I am invincible."

"You should be ashamed of yourself Victor, you’re not just a failed scientist but a lunatic who seek power and vengeance, over someone else’s hard work and glory."

"Watch your mouth fourteen! You are the one who should be grateful to me. I took care of you, watch you grow and spare your life. I taught you many things so that you can live this harsh world."

"No. You’re wrong Victor," said Claire.

"You took away my childhood, you took away my father, you took away my life that I desire, all for your own selfish ambition. I wanted to live a normal life, but you gave me hope, hope that I thought was going to help me believe that there is a chance to change the past into something that I can learn to forgive. How many innocent bloods have I spilled from orders you gave me? It was uncountable. The only reason I have stayed that long and work for you because I thought you were the man that I must serve till my very last breath, my savior who has high hopes for me, the night he took me with him."

"My dear fourteen, that’s why I want you to be with me so that we could live the world without pests."

"Bullshit! Look around you Victor what have you done? Does the world look like a very safe place to live anymore? You think I don’t know what you’re up to? You’re looking for that thing right? That’s why you asked me to look for it at Newton Corp. You want to destroy it."

"Smart girl . . . Since when did you know?"

"Since the very beginning. I know something wasn’t right, when agent twelve started appearing from nowhere. The only reason you spare me because I was still faithful to you and you needed my skills that I have acquired all these years to do all the work for you. You just want to play it safe."

"You have exceeded my expectation agent fourteen. I have no idea you could have gone this far."

"There are many things you still didn’t know about me Victor, one of them is dignity. You have sold your soul to the devil and you no longer have it. Hatred and vengeance has put you into eternal darkness and solitude. You are all alone now."

"Such a bold statement from you agent fourteen. Have you forgotten that I’ve trained you to be matured in every aspects of life so that you would blossom to face later world such as now?"

"No sir, I haven’t. That’s why I’m gonna use that against you!" Claire making her moves, quick as a jaguar, she ran, flipped and jumped toward Victor. While in mid air she threw three balls of Sonic Waves. As expected the balls froze mid air before it reached Victor. Claire had landed on the floor and ran toward Sarah and me. We quickly move to the art gallery room. Claire ordered me to switched off the main power from the basement. I did as what I was told. After few minutes, I came back to them. It was already dark inside.

"What are you playing agent fourteen? Those stupid things won’t work against me. I told you I’m invincible. Oh, have you forgotten as well that my senses have been enhanced into great intensity? I could see clearly in the dark, I could hear your breathing from here and I could even smell your fear. You want to play games? Well, it is a good thing, since if the game is over too soon it’ll be boring."

"You’re just invincible, not immortal." Answered Claire in the dark. I wore my night vision goggle. Claire already had one, but more sophisticated. It looked like a normal sunglasses but it was able to locate any enemies within thirty meters, set contrast in the dark to make it looked as if it was daylight, a hidden camera and sensor, equipped with gps and ability to capture a picture. I’ve always amazed by Newton’s technology.

"Hah! Immortal! I am actually working on that but it seems that I’m currently feeling this new power of mine growing stronger and has no limit. I don’t feel hungry or thirsty. Am I one step to immortality?" Victor voice seemed to be getting closer and closer to us.

"You’re sick and need help to cure your madness." Replied Claire.

"Claire stop provoking him! He’ll locate us!" I whispered angrily.

"Don’t worry. I have a plan. You stay here with Sarah. I’ll distract him." She gave me a mischievous smile. I worried about her and the thing behind the massive paint. I wished I could do something to unlock it, but it was just not the right time yet. Sarah came out to face Victor. Though it was dark I could see them standing face to face in about five meters range from each other through my night vision goggle.

"So you decide to come out again? You have any new idea on how to kill me?"

"I actually do." 

"It’s time for you to beg for forgiveness fourteen, now witness my power!" Victor lifted up any metal form from the room, be it metal bars, metal poles, swords, spears, arrows and even shields from those ancient artifacts and statues. All were ready to be directed toward Claire.

"Be gone!" All the metal weapons flew to hit its target. But Claire was fast enough to avoid each one of them, her flexibility and acrobatic moves were flawlessly executed. When she jumped again high up in the air she threw two small balls like Sonic Wave to Victor, but like before the balls stopped in mid air and fall to the ground.

"I told you those things wouldn’t work against me!"

"I know, but that’s not Sonic Wave. Those are Quake Bomb and Gravity Wave."

"What?!" Suddenly the floor made a terrifying earthquake as the quake bomb activated, massive cracked form on the floor, Victor was trying to keep his balance from falling to the cracked. He made a quick moved to jump but another ball has activated in time, gravity wave pulled Victor toward the floor and to the ball. He was stuck helplessly trying all his might to release himself from the gravity attraction.

Chapter 20 

The Hidden Weapon

The cracked from the Quake Bomb reached us at the art gallery room. Sarah was screaming and frightened of what had happened. I calmed her down and telling her that everything was under controlled. The massive painting was falling down, leaving the password encryption still stuck to the wall. The password has been successfully unlocked. I only need to be fast enough to get the thing out. But how? Luck residing with us, the cracked ran up to the wall and revealed the vault behind the wall. I saw the pad where the password needed to be entered. Then Claire shouted to me.

"Travis! Hurry up! Sixty seconds left before the Gravity Waves ran out."

"Don’t you have any more of those?!"

"It’s the only one I have! Hurry!" I quickly entered the password. The codes on the screen encryption device showed "X-7-7-O-N-M-Z-V-I-R-U-Z-O-8-8-X", I followed as what displayed on the screen, then "Beep!", "Access Denied". 

"Travis! Twenty five seconds left!"

"I swear I’ll kill you both!" Victor was getting furious and horribly possessed by the dark power came from the virus.

"Travis! Ten seconds!" I was out of hope and weakened by fear. I thought this was it. The end. I hoped for something miracle happenned, then I remembered Claire did hand me some balls in colored. I took them out and threw it to Claire.

"Claire catch!" She caught the balls.

"Where did you get this?! Oh!"

"No time to explain! Just do it!" She threw it to Victor and activated the new Gravity Wave. Another sixty seconds for me.

"What the fuck is this?! Release me! Grrrahhhh!" Victor was madly going all out like a monster. I tried entering the codes again, this time I changed the "O" to "0". Entering code now, "X-7-7-0-N-M-V-I-R-U-Z-0-8-8-X", "Crink!", "Access Granted." The vault door opened and there sat a device looks like strange generator, small size about as big as a car battery. It has one button on top of it in red. I took the device out and put it on the floor.

"Travis thirty seconds left!" Claire was panicking. The future is under my responsibility now. I have the hidden weapon right in front me now. It’s time to end this once and for all. There was a button and a key hole. I pressed the button, inserted the key that we got from the pendant, igniting it and a spark of a massive bright blue wave came out from the weapon, spreading to all direction and passed through any solid material around the area.