if it eats for fun or out of habit, not out of need.'
'But there is intelligence?' Evan led.
'Yes. In the Mutants, a blob of mass resembling a brain, but no electrical activity. No living cells. Just matter that resembles organic parts but in reality does not appear to be alive.'
'Then how do they…how do they live?' Wasniewski struggled with the contradiction.
'That is a mystery that is compounded by one other interesting anomaly. We’ve examined remnants of the ‘organic’ machines used by The Order as well as salvaged implants removed from converts under the control of Voggoth. They do have a form of DNA but it is radically different from anything else we’ve seen. In short, it is a strain of DNA that is very basic, very simple to the point that we would classify it as archaea in structure, yet so foreign from our experience that we cannot figure out how it works, how it survives. It does not appear to have reproductive qualities. That’s something that even the most basic microbes on our planet can do. Honestly, we are stumped.'
'So this Voggoth and his Order,' Godfrey summarized, 'are completely unique even among the invading creatures?'
Anita smiled a wait-until-you-hear-this smile. 'Senators, we found radiation damage on The Order’s organic machines and implants that matches the type and level of radiation done to the creatures that have no DNA to speak of.'
Again, that look of confusion.
'Gentlemen,' she explained slowly. 'Voggoth and the creatures that have no DNA-like Mutants, Wraiths and Goat-Walkers-they are all from the same place of origin and stand apart from the other invaders in terms of their biochemistry.'
The politicians stood silent for several moments while each tried to understand. Evan decided he had had enough learning for the day. He returned the subject to the first question he had asked when he arrived at the front gate of Red Rock two hours prior.
'Where is Trevor Stone? We scheduled this tour with him weeks ago.'
'Oh. His people cancelled his appointment. Something about a scheduling conflict.'
Evan thought she spoke the truth, but he had not received that phone call of congratulations after having been elected President of the Senate.
'Well then. If the Emperor will not come to us. I think I’ll go to him.'
14. Stress Fractures
Jon Brewer sat at the head of the conference table overseeing what passed for a military council meeting but lacked a fair number of the usual participants. General Hoth and both Omar and Anita Nehru usually attended, but Hoth and Omar continued the search for Trevor while Anita hosted VIPs at Red Rock.
Therefore, that February 4 ^ th meeting included only Generals Shepherd, 'Stonewall' McAllister, and Prescott as well as Gordon Knox, Director of Intelligence, Brett Stanton, Dante Jones, and Jon's wife and Chief Administrator, Lori Brewer.
Very few people outside of this group realized that Trevor and Revered Johnny had not been seen since January 25 ^ th. Given the time of year, it would be difficult to explain their disappearance as a vacation to their beachfront property in Wildwood, New Jersey while the number of meetings, conferences, and appearances canceled had begun to add up.
Jon started with a question, 'Okay, what's new from the research team?'
Reports from Omar's group traveled from Ohio to the estate via Gordon Knox's most trusted couriers. The Intelligence Director held the papers aloft for everyone to see and then let them fall to the table top.
'Nothing. The last reports indicate an energy signature Omar was trying to categorize. We have had no new reports since yesterday evening.'
Jon Brewer said, 'At least Hoth’s offensive has been successful. He’s taken the area around the point of interest and held it.'
'From what I heard, I reckon he paid a bit high price for that piece of real estate,' Shep, his shoulder in a sling, added.
Dante Jones had spent most of his time the past few weeks in and around Washington D.C., dealing with Senators. He just recently heard the news and was having a difficult time accepting the situation, as evident in his sharp tone: 'Yeah, well, we wouldn’t be paying any damn price if you had stopped him from going on this stupid mission.'
'One second, Dante, you know how-' Jon tried but Dante cut him off.
'Hey, you too. You’re supposed to be his friend. You should have talked some sense into him. And yeah, I know where his head was. That’s why the old cowboy over here should have been thinking a little harder before letting Trevor ride off into the sunset searching for his girl.'
Shepherd shifted in his seat just enough that he received a healthy jolt of pain from where the pipe impaled his shoulder, causing him to clench his teeth as he said, 'You listen-arrrg-I don’t have to take that from you.'
'Yeah, well, I r eckon you were the only person who could of stopped Trevor from going after Nina and you didn’t cause you wanted to go after her yourself!'
Shepherd said to Jones, 'Seems to me you were too busy playin' politics with your Senator friends down in D.C. to be worrying about what the rest of us were dealing with.'
Stanton said in a slightly raised voice, 'What difference does that make?'
Dante lifted a little from his seat as he shouted, 'She’s a soldier! Both of you knew this could of happened! Or were you and Trevor planning to go after every soldier who disappears?'
The cross talk and tempers escalated. Brewer tried to get it under control. He failed. Dante and Shepherd stood. Prescott raised his voice. Lori appeared ready to jump. Gordon Knox’s face turned red.
Bang.
A solitary gun shot exploded through the room in a sharp clap.
Jon flinched, Stanton and Lori Brewer instinctively ducked under the table, Prescott's head swiveled about, Shepherd grabbed his shoulder in pain, and Gordon Knox drew a nickel-plated semi-automatic. The basement door opened and two I.S. agents bolted down the stairs with machine guns sweeping for targets.
General Stonewall McAllister leaned back in his chair holding his pistol aloft, letting loose a very long, drawn-out yawn, the only sound in the room. A trail of smoke drifted from a fresh hole in the old oak bar nestled in the corner near Stonewall's chair.
Everyone gaped at Stonewall who, of course, wore his trademark Old Mist-colored General’s jacket while a matching hat rested on the table in front of him.
He acted surprised at the sudden attention and let his chair fall forward with a thud.
'Excuse me. It was not my intention to distract my colleagues from this spirited and insightful debate.'
Brewer dismissed the I.S. agents. The confused guards retreated from the basement.
Stonewall filled the silence, 'Where were we? Oh yes, Mr. Jones was accusing General Shepherd of poor judgment and Mr. Shepherd was questioning Mr. Jones’ focus. I believe Mrs. Brewer and Mr. Knox were about ready to join the fray. Okay, good, I just wanted to be sure that the custodians of humanity’s survival had things well under control. I am quite certain that at any moment we will manage to decide who is at fault for our current conundrum. Please, carry on.'
Shepherd grunted in pain then cast his eyes across the table. Dante met his stare. They both slumped in their chairs, embarrassed.
Apparently the floor still belonged to Garrett 'Stonewall' McAllister.
'I have come all the way from Tennessee-leaving our armies there in the hands of less experienced officers-to learn…what? Trevor is missing. Is he presumed dead? Is he presumed hostage? Are we to believe that he has been spirited off across time and space?'
'I told you what I saw,' Shepherd repeated his story yet again. 'The entire place flashed and then was gone. There was even a second of wind, as if the air rushed to fill a vacuum.'
Lori added what she had read in the report, 'Nina and her team were set free but Trevor and Johnny were
