The sentinel unit arrive at Circle HQ around 11:00 midnight. Only Joe and Marko stayed for a while upon arrival. Joe had to report to Benedict while Marko also wanted to consult with the Head of Operations regarding some matter that was bothering him.
There were no longer any Second or First-class agents left at HQ. Marko is sitting alone at the lobby, patiently waiting for Joe and Benedict to finish.
His wait didn't take long. Joe was heading out just about 10 minutes later, Benedict not far behind him, about to head home as well.
"What are you still doing here, big guy?" Joe asks him.
"I wanted to discuss some things with Benedict," he answers.
"Regarding what?" asks Benedict.
"Well, I have to meet up with the old man, I'll see you boys later," Joe bids farewell.
Benedict takes a seat, joining Marko in the lobby.
"I think I have an idea of what this is about"
"Did we kill those people?" Marko asks, no introduction.
"Marko, they were monsters. Crowe TURNED them into monsters," Benedict calmly answers.
"Crowe said half the feud survivors were still alive. And we killed EVERY SINGLE ONE of the people on that island."
"Dead, alive, Marko, he overdosed every single one of them. Even if what Crowe said is true and that there were people who were still alive when he dosed them, they were already dead when he did."
"None of the people on that island weren't going to survive whether you took action or not," Benedict adds.
"You're not answering my question."
Benedict stayed silent.
"The feud's casualties were mainly the hunters of the tribe. We killed women and children, Benedict. Children."
Benedict refuses to answer back. Marko is venting and he perfectly understood.
"I have to come home to my wife and kids with the image of an entire island of them being wiped out etched in my brain," despite his anger and frustration, Marko still remained calm.
"I didn't come to this place to massacre innocent people, Benedict. Tell me that I didn't."
"You didn't, Marko," Benedict tells Marko the words of comfort that he desperately needed.
"I understand where you're coming from, I really do. But we didn't kill innocent people. You didn't kill innocent people."
"Crowe did when he set foot in that island. And he will continue doing this to countless more so long as he's out there," Benedict continues.
Marko doesn't say anything back. He simply gets up, leaves the building, and heads home.
Marko's home is a two-hour drive from the Circle headquarters, in the suburbs outside the city. A regular suburban home — two storeys, a mowed lawn, four bedrooms, a swimming pool at the back and beside is a small playground with a treehouse for the kids. An ideal home for an ideal, regular, suburban family. Far from the head of the house's day job.
Marko arrives at his home at 1:07 in the morning. He parks his black SUV on the driveway. He steps out, keys in hand, entering the already dim house, wife and kids all fast asleep.
He takes off his suit jacket as he's walking up the stairs. He makes his way to the first door on his right, his boy and girl's room.
He enters the room slowly, steps controlled as to not wake his sleeping kids. He proceeds further inside the dark, moonlight room. On the left is his 10-year old son. He kneels right beside the bed, caresses his shoulder, and gives him a gentle kiss on the forehead.
He gets up and turns to the bed right beside it. He looks at his precious daughter, bed filled with countless stuffed toys, sleeping peacefully. He brushes her hair and gives her a gentle kiss on the forehead.
"Hi," a person by the door whispers at him – his wife wearing a sleeping gown, awakened by her arrival.
He gets up, silent steps, and gives his loving wife a tight hug. No words. Just a heartfelt embrace.
"Rough day?" she whispers. He doesn't answer.
Like Marko, Joe also heads straight to a peaceful family home, but not his — the Kaminski manor, the Circle Director's mansion. The luxurious mansion is set on a private estate in upstate New York. The piece of classic colonial architecture is surrounded by manicured grounds and lush gardens.
Despite it being already 1:00 in the morning, the Director still insisted that Joe discuss the recent mission with him. Any news regarding the wanted doctor is urgent.
A black sedan drives up the long, sweeping driveway and parks just right in front of the large mansion. Joe steps out from the car's backseat. As he approaches, the front door opens – the Director, in his comfortable sleeping attire.
The kind and hospitable Director invites Joe inside his luxurious home. Joe is no longer surprised at the sight of the mansion, he had been here numerous times already.
Upon entering is a large foyer with tall ceilings adorned with a stunning chandelier. They walk past the spacious, formal living room with a lit fireplace.
"How's the girls?" Joe asks as they walk through the wide and tall corridors, making their way to the Director's home office.
"Ah, the usual," the Director answers.
"Edith has been bugging me nonstop about retirement. Keeps telling me that you kids have everything covered. I believe her, but I just can't go yet."
"I just snuck out, she'd kill me if she finds out that I'm still talking shop and even brought home work at 1:00 in the morning," he chuckles.
"Daph has been living in the city for a couple of months now. Edith was bugging me about that, too, saying that there's no reason for her little princess to go and live alone in the city."
"I told her that Daph isn't a little kid anymore and is more than capable of making and following through with decisions on her own. She nagged me even more when I said that," he chuckles again.
Paul and his wife, Edith, have been married for a little over than 30 years. Edith used to work at Eden, albeit in its "front" and public business as the Circle still didn't exist at the time. It wasn't until she became Paul's secretary at his affairs in Eden that the two met and got to know each other. This and their marriage both occurred only a few years before the Circle was founded.
Although it wasn't always the case, Edith is fully aware of her husband's two jobs. Even after they got married and Paul was already spearheading the Circle operations, Edith was still his assistant. And for the first year or two of the Circle, he kept it hidden from her. Of course, he couldn't just lie to his wife and assistant forever, so he eventually told her the truth. Understandably, Edith was shocked at the revelation. Anyone would be. But she accepted it and only asked for her husband to ensure that he would never be in the field and in danger, which Paul assured her.
Years later when they were about to have their first and only child, Edith quit her job to focus solely on being a housewife, and mother to their beloved daughter, Daphne.
However, unlike her mother, the 22-year old Daphne who works as a fashion model and theater actress in the city is completely unaware of her father's second job. And it is that way because both of her parents agreed that she didn't need to know and it would be better to just keep her in the dark.
The two finally reach the spacious home office. Bookshelves on either side of the walls, wooden furniture, bottle of alcohol with upside down glasses on the table in the middle of a couch and chairs in the center of the room.
Joe makes his way inside and grabs a seat, no invitation needed.
"Normally, I would pour each of us a glass but it I happen to be under a violation of my curfew already," says the Director, referring to the bottle of scotch in front of them. "But please, help yourself.
"Normally, I'd empty the goddamn thing, but I'm good, pops," Joe declines.
"So," Paul sits down across from him, crossing his legs, fists clasped on top.
"Crowe?"
"First things first, I think the guy embedded void somehow," Joe starts his report which came in the form of a casual conversation.
"How so?" Paul was shocked, he was just trying to not be obvious about it.
"He used void energy. He was using some sort of phasing or de-materialization ability. There's no other explanation."
"This is not good," says Paul.
"Him mastering the use of ancient energy to the point of using it for reanimation is already horrifying. Learning how to meddle with the void is far, far worse," Paul adds.
"And at this point, it would be fair to say that he's past the experimentation stage with the void. I mean, he not only embedded a fragment, he also developed his own portal."
"And the lab monster…"
"That, too."
"Aside from catching him which, even for me, would be difficult, our only counter option is to wait and hope that whatever he's planning, he runs out of resources before finishes," Joe points out.
"The fact that he's scrounging for whatever spare parts he can find only means that he's close to running out. You don't stop for gas unless you think what's still in the tank won't do."
"About that meteorite on Sentinel Island," Paul queries.
"Accidental discovery. If I didn't know about it, then no one else in the world did," Joe answers.
"No one keeps tabs on that island aside from the Indian government. And even then, all they do is have a bunch of patrol boats roam around the waters from time to time. How Crowe found out about it, we don't and might never know," he continues.
"We need eyes everywhere. If there are still meteorites hidden somewhere we need to get to it first."
"Already did. I told HQ to perform a full-scale, global, search-and-retrieve on even the remote places that we normally look past on," says Joe.
"Everything we have, relocate and place under maximum security. Is there anything we can do about Mecca?"
"The Black Stone? We'll try but I wouldn't be optimistic about it. Those people are the least cooperative group of humans on the planet."
"We could try just taking it. We definitely could, we'd just have a riot to deal with after but even that, we could just let go and leave them be," Joe suggests.
"No, just place maximum surveillance on it. It'll cause way too much chaos and that's exactly how Crowe operates," Paul disagrees.
"Just what exactly do you think Crowe is planning?" asks Joe.
"That, I do not know. He has always been wild and unpredictable," Paul answers.
"Although I do have some… 'theory', you could say."
"What is it?"
"Do you remember that meeting we had way back, when Adam shared his 'idea'. The doctor was the only one who, although he didn't agree to the entire thing whole-heartedly, shared part of the same sentiment"
"Think they're working together?"
"I wouldn't say. What we know about the doctor so far and what he has been doing are dots that we can connect with Adam's plan. But I just can't wrap my head around it."
"Yeah, as crazy as Adam's idea was, he had a reasonable and noble reason behind it. That bastard Crowe will never do anything for that kind of purpose."
"Exactly."
"So, what you're implying is that Crowe's plan, though a different match is in the same ballpark?" Joe asks for clarification.
"That is pretty much the gist of it, yes."
"Alright, I'll drop by Atlantis. Have some talk with our old friend," Joe gets up.
"And I apologize for this one," he adds. "This one's on me."
"Ah, just keep your head up like always. Apprehending Crowe was never going to be easy," Paul is completely accepting.
"I would be lying if I said that this wasn't one of my worst fears."
"Well, I have a long way ahead of me. I'll see you again, pops."
"Are you sure you don't want to spend the night?" asks the homeowner. "Guest house is empty."
"Nah, I'm good, pops. I'll have some shut-eye on the way."