Somewhere in the Congo Basin, Africa,
A warm wind was blowing from the north, and it made the trees rustle like living things. There was a large, circular opening in the thick woods which was covered in all kinds of small trees and plants. One look was enough to see that this opening was artificially made.
There were many small artificial hills, streams and waterfalls in this setting. One could find all kinds of Tropical plants here in the state of lush growth. The climate was humid, and tall canopy trees surrounded this opening. The great Maobi trees reached as tall as 70 m around this area, making this opening look like a fortress protected by a green wall.
The air was filled with cheerful sounds of birds like a Black Casqued Hornbill, Congo Peafowl and others. A female could be seen tending to flower plants in the opening without a hint of worry or apprehension that wild animals surrounded her — animals like mountain gorillas, Giant Forest Genet, Chimpanzees, Bonobos, Pygmy elephants and other animals. There was even a leopard resting in the shade of a small tree with its eyes closed. It did not show its usual ferocious nature, and the other animals were not bothered by its presence either.
This beautiful woman looked perfectly in sync with the nature around her as she nursed a broken branch of a Blue Passion Flower plant. There was a small smile hanging on her full blazing red lips. A yellow-throated Cuckoo perched on her fair and delicate shoulder and emitted cheerful sounds. The woman's skin was glowing with vigour and vitality, and her emerald green eyes sparkled as she patched the broken branch with focus. Even the flower plant seemed to be waving its leaves and branches as if it welcomed the woman's touch and presence.
The woman's hair was a shade of warm brown which mainly flattered her emerald eyes. The hair reached her shoulders in waves. She had let it remain loose without any form of styling. But this look of hers perfectly synchronised with the surroundings.
If her ears were sharp, no one would doubt that they had finally seen a forest elf. The woman wore a mustard & navy blue colour-blocked scoop neck T-shirt and blue cut off denim shorts which revealed a pair of long, straight legs.
One peculiar future of the wild animals around her was that they did not behave like they usually do in their natural habitat. Almost every animal was doing some garden work. A mountain Gorilla was digging the soil while a bonobo was planting seeds in an orderly fashion. A pygmy elephant could be seen watering these plants with its trunks while an Okapi could be seen digging water trenches with its hooves. Another Chimpanzee was picking ripe fruits, flowers and vegetables.
Another peculiar feature was the amount and the size of the plants, flowers and trees along with the tropical fruits hanging on them. For example, the banana tree was a full 25m in height (record height is 15m), and the banana bunch hanging from the tree reached the ground. One could imagine the abnormal growth of the tree. The Durians looked like they needed four males to lift them. Every tree showed more substantial growth than usual. Even the flowers were vibrantly coloured and exuded all kinds of fragrances.
The woman's smile receded as she got up and gave a look at these animals. Within a few seconds, these animals left this place. She washed her fair, flawless hands with clear water in the nearby stream as she looked in a direction.
"R'Gana, what is it?" the woman asked even though no one could be seen. But, she spoke, a figure materialised from the shadow of a tree as if he had always been there.
"Hey, Sarah," a male youth dressed in black clothes leisurely walked into this opening at a steady pace. The youth had pitch dark short hair and electric blue eyes. His face was thin and sharp, and his eyes gave an eerie feeling when one looked at them. Black fume-like vapour could be seen lingering around his body, but Sarah was not perturbed with this phenomenon.
This youth was the one who had met the President of the US a few hours ago and had just come back. The woman called Sarah was the one who had destroyed the Eiffel Tower.
"Sarah, I have a tiny request, which needs your help," R'Gana said as he picked up a carrot and dusted the soil from it. He took a bite and nodded his head as he said, "Sweet."
"Why are you here? You did not need to come if it was a small request, personally," Sarah asked as she wiped her hands. She knew what R'Gana was talking about, and she did not want to go along with his request.
Sarah liked to be alone and disliked any 'intelligent' company. She felt like this since she was forcefully separated from her home. Sarah avoided R'Gana all the more as she found him repulsive at best.
"Well, the Captain gave the reins of the Organisation to both of us. I need you to second my motion for the Apostles to follow the order. That's the protocol," R'Gana cheerfully said. He threw the carrot after taking a few bites. A few root-like structures surfaced from the soil and dragged the bitten carrot inside.
"Is it an S level order?" Sarah asked as she wrinkled her brows. Only orders higher than 'S' level required both their authorisations.
"SSS", came the answer.
"Do you want to move into Phase II? Forget it. The time is not yet ripe," Sarah shook her head as she looked at R'Gana with a sharp gaze. Gana flinched a little when he saw that gaze. One might erroneously presume that Sarah was a person with a soft and weak personality, but nothing could be more wrong. She could fight on par with the Captain if she was enraged.
R'Gana knew that he was the weakest among the three members of the team. He also knew that Sarah would not agree to his request, but since he had come, he was prepared.
"Yup, that was the reason that I have come here. The Captain was right about the nature of this species. These people work wonders when you push them to a corner. This method is the best way to ensure that we can inspire the best potential in them. You had said the same in the beginning," R'Gana said.
Sarah nodded as she said, "So, you want to give a boost to the general population so that they could be used to as a hone to our followers? But what about the chaos and the deaths that are going to follow because of this intervention?" Sarah asked as she looked at R'Gana with chilly eyes.
R'Gana gave a wicked grin as he said, "Well, you see, our followers in the organisation have become drunk with power. It can't be that you have failed to see the signs of character decay? These bastards have become too lazy for their good."
" The way they are neglecting the true purpose of the Organisation makes me doubt if they even care about it. They are fighting for influence in this tiny place. I feel nauseated just by thinking about their lack of foresight and broader vision."
" You know, Sarah? Yesterday, a single human, a normal one, took on half a Centuri (80 Auxilia) all by himself and came on top. These Auxilia were even equipped with our bulletproof clothes and masks and modified cars."
Gana chuckled as he continued, " That human would have escaped if not for the 'Poison Mark' round given to every Centurion (leader of the Centuri - Zamir). And, do you know what that person's profession was? He was just an underling to a small mafia leader in a city in India."
" At that moment, I felt that we might have missed many such candidates with high potential because of the lack of the right conditions. Didn't you tell the same thing to the Captain when we came here for the first time? I had not agreed with you at that time but after all these years..."
"What I asked the Captain was to come clean with the humans and negotiate. We would give them advanced technology and help them accelerate their evolution while they would provide the workforce for us. I never have and never will support the creation of an anarchic state where strength rule while the weak are exploited," Sarah cut in as she glared at R'Gana.
R'Gana shook his head as he said, "we can't reveal our origins until the opportune time. As for deaths, unless such a situation was created, you think these humans will unleash their full potential? Don't tell me you do not see the signs of stagnation around you?
R'Gana sneered as he said, " Unless we stir up things a little, we can forget about utilising these people. It's not as if this fight has nothing to do with humans. 'They' don't spare anyone. Either humanity joins them or us. What would you prefer? As much as I like to think otherwise, we are the more benevolent masters, which in my eyes is no different from a critical flaw."
Sarah remained silent when she heard these words. She knew that R'Gana was speaking the truth, but it did not stop her from shaking her head, "it is not the right time to initiate Phase II. A lot of unnecessary death can be avoided if we wait for two more years. And, don't give me some example of a person showing great potential as you and I both know that a single instance should not influence our policy."
"What if I say that the 'Barrier' has presented a problem?" R'Gana muttered as he looked at Sarah.
Sarah's emerald pupils shrank when she heard these words. R'Gana's words hammered on her heart as numerous thoughts bombarded her mind one after the other. Sarah knew that R'Gana would not joke about these things. She raised her eyes to look at R'Gana and asked, "How? Wasn't it supposed to give us an advantage of 35 to 40 years?"
R'Gana shrugged his shoulders as he said, "Who knows? It's not like technology was our strong point. Those bastards are the ones who created it, we just stole it and utilised it for the first time. Problems were bound to happen. The Captain is already looking into the problem as we speak. He also seems to think like me, and that is the reason I am here, to convince you."
R'Gana scoffed at Sarah as he continued, " Sarah, you have to get your priorities straight and should not let your heart cloud your mind. We all are forced to make hard choices. Remember your home..."
"ENOUGH, go with Phase II. You have my permission. But don't you dare think about Phase III. Now get out," Sarah's heart constricted when her home was mentioned. R'Gana touched the soft spot in her heart. R'Gana chuckled as he vanished on the spot.
Sarah knew that R'Gana did not care about the potential of humans. He only cared about the chaos that would be caused by the introduction of Phase II before the preordained time. R'Gana was like that naughty kid who pours hot water over an anthill on a small inkling. It was just that the humans were no different than ants in his eyes.
The reason that Sarah agreed to this request was that she did not trust the Organisation that they created to follow their orders to the very end. The Captain had little time to deal with these matters while Gana was too spiteful about humans to think about these things.
It was only Sarah who had studied humans as a species in detail. She had spent a lot of time learning the world cultures, history and languages. Sarah knew the characteristics of humanity and its various races. She knew that humans as a species were still in the adolescent phase of their evolutionary path and were highly prone to manipulation. They have not shed their primitive survival instincts which prioritised self-protection over that of the wellbeing of the society as a whole.
Sarah had studied about a few people who were ahead in the curve and had sacrificed their lives for a small part of society (race, country, state, religion, etc.). But the number of such people was one in a million or even more rare, and it was not enough in her eyes.
The implementation of Phase II is in humanity's favour and will bring out the best of them to the forefront. Given the power of Sarah's background, she did not fear the betrayal of the Organisation while they were here. But the enemy was similarly powerful and highly manipulative. Only the trustworthy would be allowed to walk with them. Sarah sighed as she looked at the brightly lit sky.
Every living being in the cosmos is precious and unique. At the same time, the fear of destruction of one's home trumps all virtues. It was the same with Sarah. She needed strong subordinates. If she had to be harsh and ruthless to protect what's precious to her, she was ready to sell her soul.