"Time for another journal entry, need to keep myself occupied while Mac can't speak to me.", said Alpha as his orb of light is seen just floating around Mac's mind still learning from his past.
"The Order….only if I knew more about them then I could figure out what their ultimate goal is.", said Alpha as he floated around, pacing in thought.
"From everything that both myself and Luis know just isn't enough, we know that their leader is someone powerful with knowledge of alchemy and supernatural powers obtained from The Darkness….", said Alpha as he continued to list everything he knew.
"….but that's all we really know, so whether they use some sort of command structure for their followers is unknown at this time….but hopefully Luis can find something out from that underground network he told me about, just can't remember the name of it.", said Alpha but then his mind wonders back to The Order.
"For some reason I cannot shake this feeling that The Order itself should seem familiar to me, but I can't figure out why.", said Alpha which he ends his journal entry for now, then darkness….
As Alpha continues to contemplate over facts about The Order while also trying to figure out other ways to get information about them, the focus of Mac and his friends switches over to what looks like a massive conference room with a large round table in the center.
Around the table are five chairs perfectly positioned at certain points that form the five points of a star with the top point having a larger chair compared to the others around it, signifying the chair for a leader.
Then Kassandra is seen entering this room and walking over to that large chair and taking a seat as it's realized that this room belongs to The Order, then shortly after Kassandra's arrival three other people are seen entering the room as well.
Another familiar face is seen as it is Lorenzo walking in and taking the seat to Kassandra's left and with closer inspection to the chair itself has a label etched into it saying….Death.
The other two people that followed Lorenzo into the room are not known just yet but it appears to be another man and woman as they walk around to Kassandra's right side and take the seats with similar labels only this time these say….War and Conquest.
Which now only leaves one empty seat in the room as the leader and three members of The Order's hierarchy patiently wait for that person's arrival, someone that is labeled….Famine.
While Kassandra and the others wait on this so called "Famine", the man who sits in the chair labeled War starts to become slightly impatient.
"Hijo de puta, where the fuck is Magdelena?!", exclaimed the man who is labeled as War.
"Cálmate Jullian, you should know by now that she's never on time for these meetings.", said the lady who sat in the chair labeled Conquest.
"Isabelica is right, but according to Lorenzo she should be here real soon.", said Kassandra even though it didn't make the newly introduced Jullian any less impatient, but then on cue the door to the room opens and another woman is seen walking in heading over to the empty seat labeled "Famine".
"Sorry I'm late everyone, traffic from the airport was a pain.", said the lady who is labeled as Famine, then Lorenzo stands up in anger towards this lady.
"How many times do I have to tell you to address Lady Kassandra properly, Magdelena!!!", yelled Lorenzo which only seems to make the newly introduced Magdelena laugh at his anger.
"Or what? You going to kill me with that dull blade of yours Lorenzo.", said Magdelena as she mocked him knowing all too well that Lorenzo hasn't killed anyone in an exceptionally long time.
"How dare you!!!", said Lorenzo as he pulls out his blade but before he could even make another move, Kassandra intervened….
"Enough!!! Both of you!!!", yelled Kassandra which ultimately calmed Lorenzo down and sat back down but Magdelena just gave a slight chuckle.
"My apologies Lady Kassandra, it won't happen again.", said Lorenzo as he gave one last look of hatred to Magdelena only for her to smile back.
"Do you have something to say Magdelena?", asked Kassandra.
"Yeah, yeah I'm sorry too Lady Kassandra.", said Magdelena with no manners whatsoever, which again irritated Lorenzo but decided to just leave it alone.
"I swear, this time period has changed you for the worst Magdelena.", said Kassandra in disappointment.
"Well what can you do about it, when you've been alive as long as we have things do tend to change.", said Magdelena as she hints about everyone's age.
"Anyways, now that everyone is here….let's get this meeting started shall we.", said Kassandra as she stands from her chair and greets everyone with their official name and title.
"Welcome Lorenzo de Navarra, The Ashen Reaper....Death.", said Kassandra as she points to him….he stands up, bows to Kassandra and sits back down.
"Welcome Isabelica de Rivera, The Ivory Archer….Conquest.", said Kassandra as she points to her….she stands up, bows to Kassandra and sits back down.
"Welcome Jullian de Rivera, The Cardinal Swordsman….War.", said Kassandra as she points to him….he stands up, bows to Kassandra and sits back down.
"Welcome Magdelena de Acre, The Raven Arbitrator….Famine.", said Kassandra as she points to her….she stands up, bows to her and sits back down.
Lorenzo is pleased to know that Magdelena can still do something right when in the presence of Kassandra, but continues to despise her attitude even though she does it because of her skill set.
Kassandra sits back down after doing formal introduction of her generals, then she snaps her fingers and a couple of waiters go around and place a drink in front of everyone which they are all too familiar with.
"Is it that time of the decade Lady Kassandra?", asked Lorenzo as he picks up the drink to examine it.
"Yes, drink up everyone….here's to another 10 years.", said Kassandra, then everyone drank the liquid.
"Eh, I will never get used to this taste but it's a necessity nonetheless.", said Jullian as he puts down the glass on the table, then looks over at Kassandra.
"So Lady Kassandra, what is so urgent that you gathered all of your generals here today?", asked Jullian.
"Yes well, I'm assuming you've all seen the news reports about the pillar of light from three weeks ago?", asked Kassandra which everyone other than Lorenzo nodded their heads in acknowledgement.
"Yes Lady Kassandra, my brother and I saw it while we were stationed at the Spain Headquarters….what could it have been?", asked Isabelica as her curiosity began to show.
"My brother's power has finally awakened.", said Kassandra which surprised everyone since they've been hunting for this power for an exceptionally long time.
"Is our time to rule the world finally here?!", asked Magdelena with extreme excitement in her voice almost to the point that she sounded maniacal but with reason, they've all been waiting an exceedingly long time.
"Calm yourself Magdelena, while I appreciate your enthusiasm….we haven't gotten that far just yet.", said Kassandra which then Jullian becomes slightly concerned by her tone of voice.
"What do you mean Lady Kassandra, can we not obtain your brothers power?", asked Jullian as he became confused, then Kassandra gave a heavy sigh.
"Unfortunately we cannot….only because I don't know the extent of what this power is.", said Kassandra which seemed to slightly anger the generals except for Lorenzo.
"What do you mean you don't know the extent of it!!!", yelled Magdelena which made Lorenzo very unhappy.
"Do not raise your voice to Lady Kassandra!!!", exclaimed Lorenzo as they both drew their weapons and were about to attack each other when Kassandra intervened….
"Enough from the both of you!!!", exclaimed Kassandra as her rage distilled fear in both Lorenzo and Magdelena as they were reminded of her vast power and uncanny ability to put fear into anyone, including her generals.
"My apologies, Lady Kassandra.", said Lorenzo and Magdelena at the same time as they put their weapons away and returned to their seats.
"Anyways, as I was saying….the reason I said I don't know the extent of the power is because my brother made sure that no one, not even myself, could find out about his work.", said Kassandra, then she continued….
"After we lost track of him so long ago, we searched through all of his known locations but there was not one shred of evidence to explain what this power could do….the only reason I knew this power existed was because he told me before I turned on him.", said Kassandra as she explained what little knowledge she had about this power.
"So how do you know that the pillar of light is in fact your brothers' mysterious power that we've been looking for Lady Kassandra?", asked Isabelica knowing that doubting her could come with some punishment but was willing to take that risk.
"How bold of you to doubt me Isabelica, but I'll let it slide this time.", said Kassandra as she gave a disappointed look to Isabelica.
"But your question still holds some merit….on the night the pillar of light took shape, the power I felt coming from it was very familiar as it reminded me of my dear old brother and that's when I knew.", said Kassandra while recalling the night of the pillar of light.
"So Lady Kassandra, what's are next move?", asked Jullian as he was ready for any task at hand.
"Well after that night, almost everyone in the immediate area saw the pillar and the police were all over the scene for the first week.", said Kassandra as she began to explain….
"Then I had Lorenzo reach out to some of our followers in the FBI which then they took over the scene and did their own investigation as well.", said Kassandra.
"But much to our surprise, we were left without any clues as to what or where the power could be.", said Kassandra with disappointment in her voice.
"Uh, may I Lady Kassandra?", asked Lorenzo for permission to speak which Kassandra nodded her head in agreement.
"Thank you Lady Kassandra….during the investigation, our followers asked multiple people about what happened that night but it seemed that none could remember anything prior to the pillar of light.", said Lorenzo as he shared more details about the investigation.
"So after multiple interviews around the area, we determined that the pillar of light must of affected everyone within a one-mile radius that caused them to have their memories erased.", said Lorenzo which surprised the rest of the generals as they wondered what kind of power could do that.
"Hmm….so unfortunately we're still at square one as we don't know any more than what was explained here today.", said Kassandra as her hatred for her brother grew even more.
"This frustrates me so much that my brother continues to be one step ahead of me, even in death.", said Kassandra very angrily but soon after she calmed herself down.
All of the generals sat there as they pondered different ideas or possible plans in order to figure out this mysterious power left by Kassandra's brother but none could come up with anything.
"What's our next move then Lady Kassandra?", asked Isabelica as she became eager to hunt down this mysterious power.
"It's simple really….we hunt!", said Kassandra with a smile across her face.
"We know this, the power is obviously close by since the events of that night took place in the United States and more importantly I believe that this power might only work with a suitable host but I'm not 100% sure on that.", said Kassandra as she began to lay out the plan.
"Now if it is attached to a host, the only problem is figuring out who it is and how to remove it from them and take it for ourselves.", said Kassandra as she thinks of other ways this power could work.
"But I'm not going to sit here and make assumptions so I'm going to be assigning everyone a task to do until more info can be found about my brothers power.", said Kassandra as her generals understood and agreed to her instructions.
"So your assignments are as follows….", Kassandra began to say to all of her generals.
"Magdelena, as my expert negotiator you'll be joining the followers in the FBI who are in charge of the investigation and do your own investigation….also you'll be allowed to use any means necessary to gather information.", said Kassandra.
"Understood Lady Kassandra.", said Magdelena.
"Jullian, as my expert swordsman you'll be staying here and training our followers in basic combat to prepare them in case they need to fight even though the creatures of The Darkness will be our first line of offense and defense.", said Kassandra.
"Understood Lady Kassandra.", said Jullian followed by a slight sigh.
"Do you have a problem with your orders Jullian?", questioned Kassandra as she started to become slightly irritated.
"No Lady Kassandra, not at all.", said Jullian very nervously.
"Good, moving on.", said Kassandra as her irritation quickly went away.
"Although Lorenzo would've been better for this assignment seeing as he has more combat knowledge than I do.", said Jullian to himself as he didn't want to face the wrath of Kassandra.
"Isabelica, as my expert infiltrator you'll be going to the city where the pillar of light occurred and learn more about what others know or may have seen that were not affected by the pillar itself.", said Kassandra.
"Understood Lady Kassandra.", said Isabelica.
"Now last but certainly not least….Lorenzo, unfortunately since your expertise is in assassination I can't just have you going around killing people for no reason, don't want that kind of attention for The Order just yet.", said Kassandra as she took a moment to think what Lorenzo could possibly do.
"I understand Lady Kassandra but if I may make a suggestion?", asked Lorenzo which Kassandra nodded her head as she was interested in what he had to say.
"Seeing as our numbers have dwindled over the last few decades, why don't I go around looking for some new blood to join our ranks?", asked Lorenzo which slightly irritated Kassandra knowing that he was right and that they do need more members, so she reluctantly agreed.
"Very well Lorenzo, you'll be in charge of gathering recruits….but make sure that they can understand our logic, also avoid college students.", said Kassandra without explanation as to why she didn't want college students in their ranks but it was no place for Lorenzo to question her orders.
"Yes, Lady Kassandra as you wish.", said Lorenzo.
So now that all the generals had their orders the meeting was adjourned and they had all left the room except for Kassandra who stayed behind to think about what the future could hold for her and The Order….
"My brother was always clever and smart growing up, once he got into alchemy at a young age was when everything had changed not just for him, but our family as well.", said Kassandra as she sat there remembering the old days when she was in good terms with her brother.
"Sometimes I wish that he could've followed me and lead The Order but he was always just too good, which ended up being his downfall….or at least I thought so.", said Kassandra as she continued to think back when she became enemies with her brother.
"But now it seems that with all the time that we spent apart, you only grew for the betterment of mankind while I fell behind and stayed in the dark….only waiting until the day that I can rise up and take what is rightfully mine.", said Kassandra as the anger and hate over her brother only intensified.
"It is unbelievable how many lives I had to live over the many centuries it took until your power had awoken, here I thought that I had to go through one more….but not anymore.", said Kassandra, then she got up and left the room only to head straight to her office.
Elsewhere, Jullian and Isabelica are seen near the buildings entrance just before departing for their assignments….
"I sometime just don't understand Lady Kassandra, she knows that Lorenzo is better suited at training the recruits but I'm stuck doing that instead.", said Jullian as he was disappointed in his assignment although Isabelica has a different understanding as to why he was given that assignment.
"Jullian….you realize that the reason she gave you this particular assignment was because you have a very short temper and always like to start fights for no reason.", said Isabelica which then Jullian gave her an annoyed expression.
"Th-That's not true, I have no idea what you're talking about.", said Jullian knowing all too well that his own sister is correct, but he'll never admit to it.
"Oh really, then tell me one assignment that you went on that didn't end in some sort of bloodbath?", questioned Isabelica which made Jullian think long and hard through all of his known assignments only to end up agreeing with her.
"Damn it, you're right….but I still don't see how putting me in a room with fresh meat is going to be any better.", said Jullian which made Isabelica chuckle for a moment.
"Oh, what's so funny?", asked Jullian.
"Oh nothing, just hearing you say that I'm right is always amusing….but on the other hand, training the fresh meat should help you in controlling your temper, or at least try to.", said Isabelica only for Jullian to shrug off her cockiness.
"Ah whatever, I'm going back in to check out the fresh meat….let me know when you arrive at the location.", said Jullian which Isabelica noticed his concern for her seeing as they're siblings and all.
"Ahh, does my baby brother really care for me that much?", asked Isabelica in a very sarcastic motherly tone that only irritated Jullian.
"Fuck off, we were born at the same time….I'll talk to you later.", said Jullian as he walked further into the building while waving his hand, which Isabelica gave another slight chuckle and exited the building.
Besides for Jullian and Isabelica, none of the other generals ever really got along with each other especially after working together for so long which made getting assignments done rather quickly and easily, but unknown to the generals and even Kassandra….this time around things were not going to be easy.
Even though Magdelena and Isabelica were going to the same city where the pillar of light originally appeared, they still took different flights just so they couldn't get in each other's way.
As for Lorenzo, he took a more casual approach to his assignment by going around to local places where he could easily find people who are willing to join The Order and follow them for the rest of their lives.
And of course, we couldn't forget about poor Jullian who was stuck training the fresh meat to prepare for any kind of battle that could come their way….although upon taking a look at the so-called fresh meat, he was very doubtful that anything would get done.
Then as Kassandra is seen sitting in her office all she could think about is one thing….hunting down her brother mysterious power and claiming it for herself.
"No matter how long it takes, that power will eventually be mine and mine alone!!!", exclaimed Kassandra as she soon began to laugh maniacally but during her uncontrolled laughter, the focus is changed to a picture located on her desk of an older man and child that may seem very familiar….
Then darkness….
To Be Continued....