A masked man shook the dagger in his hand, casting droplets of blood on the wooden walls of the secret room where elites of British Columbia are having a meeting. On his left hand is a sinister looking man who now struggled under his iron grip.
"Pweasss iil choo anythinnn...dn kill eeeee. Huhuhu." The man pissed himself in fear, everyone in the room just suddenly died and before he could process anything, he is already in the air like a child lifted in one hand by the neck. A head rolled not far from him, the scar and blind eyes that arrogantly announced his plans from before now lay dead without knowing how he died.
"Hehe. You're quite amusing. Remember to be good in your next life." The man slowly wilted and dried until he died. The shrunken husk fell to the ground and broke and the room was soon engulfed in flames. David who killed these pigs remained expressionless with closed eyes. "I see..." He muttered before disappearing from the room.
Being the first time that he used life drain, everything that occurred as he absorbed the life of another is a lesson learned towards self improvement. As the skill suggests, the skill is all about absorbing the life of another and using it as sustenance in order to temper one's own. David felt that is he continued to absorb for a long time, his healing factor would surpass the omega level and develop towards divinity. The process would require millions upon millions but the strength he could get would be unimaginable.
David sighed and scrapped the idea as he hurriedly flew back. This time, one of his spies in England reported to him about the strange movements of a certain person of interest. This meant that the preparations needed to be accomplished and the plan of action should be finalized.
David landed on the training ground where James and Victor can be seen sparring under Damian's watchful eyes. On the other side, John can be seen slamming himself repeatedly to a tree in an attempt to phase through it. Unfortunately for him, he could not replicate that one time event when it occurred. Thinking back to it, it happened when he was dodging a punch from David who was sparring with him at the time.
"Boy, I swear if you do that again you could get hurt." It wasn't until he exited his ghost form that Damian and the others noticed him. Damian who is the closest was startled the most and even attacked, unfortunately, the attack passed through David like he is nothing but an apparition.
David smiled cheekily. "We need to talk." He said before greeting the others. "Nice job on the cleanup operation you guys. I have news concerning the vampires we encountered. We'll talk later. Hey John! Why don't you just let these guys stab you or something, I think that would be a hundred times more effective. Grandpa, let's go?" John had a look of contemplation before looking at James and then resuming to slam the tree. Victor had this teasing grin while James who learned why John acted this way can only smile bitterly.
"It's done. The only thing left to do is to bide our time. We have plenty anyway. I'll leave everything in your care while I'm gone. Don't let my brothers run loose, it will be a nightmare to clean up after them again. Just follow these guidelines that I've set and it should be fine." David took out a small booklet from his drawer and gave it to his Grandpa Damian.
"Don't worry, I'll watch over them. You can go with peace of mind, when you come back we will build these things that you imagine in that brilliant head of yours." With Damian's reassurance, David left the room to prepare.
The only city of the Howlett estate is located at Fort Providence, where the climate is more bearable for human habitation. Its towns lined the banks of the Mackenzie river, each of which can be easily accessed via rail transit. This mode of transportation however only goes up to Norman Wells where one would have to ride a River Steamer to get to New Port Town.
It has been a few years since he was transported into this world and he managed to make do with what he have but that's it. The population of Fort Providence which is originally just a few hundreds. This is mainly because of reasons such as the remoteness of the land, the harsh conditions, limited resources, lack of infrastructures and the limited access to transportation.
In fact, the Howlett mainly relied on fur trade as its source for many generations. If not for David's bold and progressive ideas, the current state of Fort Providence which boasted a population that is approaching twenty thousand will most probably be deemed impossible.
From trading furs, the Howlett now traded manufactured products crafted from the natural resources of the Northwestern territories. Mines and logging is flourishing while sawmills, metalworking, textiles, leatherworking, and small factories are quickly developing. This is mainly due to the opening of the railway from Fort Providence to Norman Wells which greatly lowered the transport cost, making it viable to process and export goods. This industrial base created jobs that attracted skilled workers which snowballed into a diversified population.
River Steamers would then transport the products from Norman Wells to the Steam-powered ships docked in New Port Town (Locally known as Tuktoyaktuk or Tuk for short). From here, the seasonal trade that spanned from June to October (which is the spring to autumn season in these parts) will begin.
With a well-established railway, expanded river and oceanic trade, and the ability to transport goods internationally, Fort Providence could realistically grow into a city of 20,000–30,000 people in the near future. Its economy that transitioned from a frontier resource-extraction hub to a regional industrial and trade center, is now supporting a broad range of jobs and services to sustain a sizeable, settled population. This growth made Fort Providence a major northern city, pivotal in connecting the Northwest Territories to the rest of the world.
David almost shed a tear watching this baby grow into what it currently is. He turned and flew at a speed equal to Mach 2 towards Tuk where a Sail-steam powered boat is already waiting for his arrival. Flying to Egypt would have been a faster way but David decided to fully experience the thrill of sailing which he did not get to experience in his past life.
To get to Egypt from Tuk, the steam-sail ships will have to navigate to the open waters and cross the Hudson bay before reaching the Hudson straight for a journey that would take three to four weeks. After this, a transatlantic voyage to Europe would take a least seven to ten days. Lastly, the journey from Europe to the Mediterranean and into Egypt would take no less than two weeks. It is a month-long journey that someone like David who came from the modern era is not accustomed to. Nevertheless, he is willing to experience it at least once in this life.
[1859, Essex Secret Laboratory, London, England]
Nathaniel Essex shook his head as the test subject on the operating table began to destabilize and lose his vitality. He sighed thinking, 'Another failure...' He then looked at the preserved remains of his son Adam who died at the age of four due to birth defects. It served as his inspiration and drive to pursue his dream in perfecting humanity.
Nathaniel Essex straightened up, peeling off his bloodstained gloves and tossing them onto a metal tray. The laboratory, dimly lit and cluttered with the remnants of his latest experiment, felt stifling, filled with the acrid scent of chemicals and the faint hum of his makeshift machines. He walked over to the glass case that held Adam's remains, his hand hovering just above the glass.
"Forgive me, my son," he murmured, his voice a mixture of sorrow and resolve. "You should have lived in a world without suffering… without weakness."
But his attempts, his countless nights spent hunched over anatomy books and dissecting cadavers, seemed to be failing him. Each test subject had been unable to withstand the cellular augmentations he had designed. Some succumbed within hours; others lasted days, even weeks, before their cells disintegrated under the strain of Essex's modifications. It was maddening.
"Its the cells that contain Essex factor," he whispered to himself helplessly. "It's all in the cells." The limited technology and resources became an insurmountable hurdle in his research on the human condition. Despite this Nathaniel's brilliance can be seen through his progress in the field.
Although the invention of the microscope was a huge help as he began to understand the nature of cells. Each cell was like an intricate universe, one he'd only begun to explore and understand. His research is nowhere near its completion and he knew that he is running out of time.
If he could alter the fundamental building blocks of humanity, he could bypass the flaws that had plagued his previous attempts. He could eliminate the imperfections, eradicate disease, and, most importantly, preserve life.
'If I can only observe and manipulate the Essex factor in these cells, my Adam wouldn't have suffered.'
Nathaniel Essex straightened, glancing once more at Adam's lifeless form, the gleam of preserved flesh both a reminder of his loss and a promise of what he aimed to accomplish. There was a long, arduous journey ahead. A journey that would lead him away from the fringes of respectable science and into uncharted, and likely forbidden, territories of morality.
But what was forbidden to others was a necessity to him. He would perfect humanity, and he would do it for Adam. With newfound resolve, Essex turned back to his work, his mind racing with possibilities.
"Dr. Essex, the new batch of test subjects have been delivered." Dr. Essex continued his work after nodding in understanding. "Is there something else?" He asked noticing that Tremble still hasn't left after giving his usual report.
"We have encountered someone who is very interested in your work. If you are interested, he said he has a way to help you accomplish your research." Tremble explained.
Dr. Essex was immediately interested but it did not show in his face. "Does this someone have a name?" He asked.
"Yes. He is called En Sabah Nur. We sort of accidentally woke him up and so we got our ass handed to us. He wanted to meet you. Ummmm... He's here." Tremble explained before the door to the laboratory opened to reveal a two-meter tall, metallic bald humanoid with thick blue lips.