Synarchy Book 1: The Awakening Chapter 19

Copyright © 2006 DCS. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, organizations, places, events, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictiously. Any resemblance to actual person, living or dead, events or locales is entirely conincidental.

International Standard Book Number (ISBN): 978-0-6151-9675-6

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Chapter 19 “The great strength of our Order lies in its concealment, let it never appear, in any place in its own name, but always covered by another name, and another occupation. None is fitter than the three lower degrees of Freemasonry; the public is accustomed to it, expects little from it, and therefore takes little notice of it.” - Dr. Adam Weishaupt

June 11th, 2012 Washington, D.C. The White House 4:11 PM

Rainbow City has fallen.” “Why didn’t the Darkworkers see this coming?” “We don’t know, sir. The Sirians and the Pledians continue to interfere.” His eyes were not human, though they appeared that way when he wanted them to. Manipulation of the cells in the human body was so ridiculously simple it was laughable that humankind didn’t know how to shape shift. This news angered him and his eyes flipped, exposing the reptilian irises. “What of the Terenzio’s?” “They continue as expected. Our insiders have found an Atlantian, a survivor of Rainbow City. They wish to bring him to us in exchange for full membership into the Brotherhood.” A serpent-like tongue flicked out of his mouth, darting across his lips. “I’m sure they do. Bring them to me.” “Yes sir. What of the other Terenzio’s?” “Continue as planned. We will still launch Alternative Three ahead of schedule.” His hand extended, switching erratically from dark green scales to smooth white skin as he pressed the button to end the conversation.

It would be close, but the Brotherhood would not fail. They had held control of this planet for too long just to give it away because the Galactic Federation claimed it was time. Let the vibrations rise, he didn’t care how many of the slaves, “awakened.” Let them think the planet would Ascend. They had tried before, they would fail again. A sharp knock came at his office door. It took a mere thought to return his eyes and the texture of his hand to their hidden state. “Come in.” The uniformed officer saluted sharply before informing him, “Mr. Vice President, they are ready for you now.”

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June 12th, 2012 Alcyone Island St. Judas Memorial Gardens 12:12 AM

A warm rain had started. It came down in thick sheets, thunder lazily grumbling in the distance. The shadowed figure didn’t carry an umbrella, she didn’t mind the rain. Kayla preferred thunderstorms. For fifty-five years she had lived a lie. Perfectly. She had situated herself into the family better than They had expected of her. As Marcello Terenzio’s youngest daughter she was a board member. She ran the subsidiary, Empire Cruise Lines. Alcyone was an island after all, uniquely positioned between two major countries. They didn’t always smuggle things by air. That meant she was privy to a great deal. Since she was thirteen years old, Kayla had been feeding the Brotherhood everything she knew about the Terenzio’s. Sixteen hours ago she learned that step-father played the game better than she had. Sixteen hours ago she learned that from the first day she’d appeared on his doorstep – he had known the truth. The rain washed away the line of tears that fell in silence as she stared down at freshly dug earth next to where her mother was buried.

Marilyn Terenzio had been the first person Kayla had learned to love. It had happened unintentionally. They had tried to train her against it but things endured by a five-year-old were not always completely washed away with mind altering drugs. She remembered the videos. The man with the funny smell that taught her to hide how much she disliked it when people touched her. She frequently suffered from nightmares. It was not until she’d come to this island that she’d understood what it was really like to be embraced by the unconditionally loving, reassuring warmth of a mother. It made the nightmares stop after a while. Kayla knew that’s why her mother had been killed; so she didn’t forget the plan and whom she belonged to. Who would take care of her after all the Terenzio’s were dead. Caesar had appeared shortly thereafter. She had thought he was as good as the rest of the Brotherhood when she brought him home one weekend from college and Marcello accepted him with open arms. Now she knew that her step-father had been a lot smarter than she had given him credit for. Maybe she should have realized that years ago. She had been sent here to kill him, taught that from day one. Initially she hadn’t formed a connection to him, not like she had with her mother. It wasn’t hard to keep the distance, he wasn’t around much. She was seventeen when her mother died, and the nightmares came back. She fully expected to wake from the next to nothing but darkness and the cruel lingering visions of the past. Instead, he had been there. Her screams were soothed by his strong quiet voice, and she was amazed at how easy it was to burrow into his chest, hiding from the truth. She let herself believe the lie in those moments, because his arms were warm and strong and she’d never felt protected before. He was around more after that. When she’d finished college he began inviting her more frequently to his office on the infamous 52nd floor. The Brotherhood had loved it. Secretly, so had she. To this day, Marcello had been the only man who could touch her without making her skin crawl. Even her gentle half brother Demetrius had made her inwardly flinch when he put a hand on her. Kayla didn’t understand Marcello Terenzio. He had known she was not his, that she was an enemy, the bastard child of his raped wife. But he looked at her like he loved her anyway, she knew this for certain. He had looked at Demetrius and pictures of Amanda the same way.

“Why? Why would you ask me…?” Kayla whispered the unanswered question into the rain that crashed down around her. The letter Marcello had written her was crumpled up in her closed fist. A father’s last request of his daughter. Except she was not his daughter. Never mind that she loved him like the father he wasn’t. She’d never admitted that to him, she didn’t know if she ever would have. She had never been given the order to kill him and hadn’t questioned why. But yesterday, Caesar had called to tell her that he would be coming back to the Island soon. She knew why. Orders were coming. They were worried about the success of the Ascension. Frankly she was surprised they hadn’t killed the Terenzio’s sooner if they were that concerned. Regardless, someone was going to die and she would be the one pulling the trigger. The cruel beauty of it was that even if she didn’t want to, they could make her. It only took a single phrase. Caesar was usually the one to ‘activate’ her. Kayla bent down to set the single red rose on top of the freshly dug wet dirt. Her head bowed, her dark blonde hair soaked and coming loose from the pins that held it back in place. She closed her eyes, fighting a losing battle against emotions she didn’t want to feel. She would disappoint her step-father. Choices weren’t given to things that were owned. “I’m sorry, Dad,” Kayla whispered. Her cell phone rang. She knew it was Caesar. She flipped it open. “Yes?” “Get ready to rid the world of your family baby. I’m on my way home.” Kayla was not a Terenzio. She was a child of the Project, loyal only to the Brotherhood. “I understand.” Her face hardened and her fingers opened, Marcello’s crumpled letter fluttering into the mud as she walked away.