FictionPress.com - let the words flow
| FictionPress.com - let the words flow |
|
| Home Just In Communities Forums Beta Readers Dictionary Search | Login Register Extras |
NOTE: This is the prologue – these characters do play a part in the story but, as the summary suggests, the story revolves around Jared Radetsky (Gregovich Radeschi’s/Radetsky’s grandson). However, you need this introduction to the New Nation Order in order to fully comprehend the problems that Jared Radetsky now faces.
So yeah. I recommend you read it.
But when Jared Radetsky renounces his title after a Trained assignment goes horribly wrong, his family and the other leaders can no longer trust him with classified information. And the world in which he has been brought up to lead becomes the very world he will come to fear. Now his only chance of survival lies with the same girl whose heart he broke more than four years ago. The problem? As one of The Trained it is her duty to assassinate him and protect the other leaders from the information he could disclose. And revenge is always sweet.
So God created people in his own image; God patterned them after himself; male and female he created them (Genesis 1:27)
Fall From Grace
- Prologue: Genesis -
The flickering light of a lone oil lantern cast four faces into dancing shadow. Miles away, blasts tore apart the night and flames swallowed the greatest cities whole, illuminating the night sky in a proud proclamation of war. A war in which the entire world had played a part.
“Madness,” one muttered, his accent thickly European. If, of course, a Europe still existed. It did not.
Perhaps it had been the first continent to fall beneath the chaos that awaited them outside. Certainly, it had not been the last. Now, only areas of Russia remained intact and the European survivors had fled, seeking refuge in other parts of the world. They would find little.
The man’s name was Jarvis de Moretti, leading scientist in his field of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology – the only one among them who had worked closely with the team that had instigated this ‘madness’, as he referred to it.
For this, he was not to be trusted and the others guarded their words closely around him. His heavy brows and hasty comb over gave him the quality of one who had aged well before his time – quite ironic considering the genetic tampering in which he had played a role.
“Not madness,” a second man corrected in his halting English, quirking a fine brow at his companion. “Japan.” A pause. “I recognise the technology.” A wistful smile tugged at his thin lips at the mere mention of his country – a country that had, by its significant part in the World War, dealt Yukio Kurosawa a great blow.
“Never would I have thought technology – my technology – could lead to such,” he paused once more, searching for the word. “Lead to such hidoi things. Those machines out there, murdering our people – they were designed to defend their masters only. We spent many years on the prototype.” He shook his head bitterly. “Billions of dollars, furenzu. Four years ago, the government bought the technology for billions of dollars but now I do not even have a world in which to spend it.”
Despite his words, his appearance suggested that he had maintained an extravagant lifestyle for quite a few years. Perhaps it was the gold band that glinted from his smallest finger, no less than thirty carat. Or the hint of quite a few pounds gained from beneath the tailored suit.
“Kurosawa, unsurprising that you would choose to mention money at a time like this.” Rashida Rambatan’s genial smile was strained but she managed it nonetheless. Her nation – Nigeria – had been least affected by the explosions and gunfire but, then, there was nothing much to destroy in the first place. Even five hundred years after the collapse of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, freeing her country from world debt.
She was a Rhodes scholar – had acquired a degree as far from this dirty, disgusting war as one could get – and was not quite certain why she had been invited to join this ambitious circle of men.
She suspected that it had something to do with the incredibly large sum to the Rambatan name – second only to that of the Aldford line. Unlike the Aldford’s, however, the Rambatan family could only be traced as far as two centuries back.
And never again, she thought with a sigh. Unless this was is stopped.
The ground shook beneath them as a terrific explosion rocked the waters nearby. Glass shattered, coating the floorboards in countless shards.
“Aldford, where the hell is this friend of yours?” de Moretti steadied himself against the table. “For God’s sakes, we’ll all be killed.”
“It entertains me, de Moretti, that you are able to believe in a God after the blood you have spilled. Do you honestly believe He will deign to save you?” Niklas Aldford’s amused tone was smooth in the blanket of darkness. He moved to replace the oil lantern that had rolled beneath the table during the quake. His cool grey eyes were, once again, illuminated by the sputtering flame.
In his early thirties, he was the youngest among them but he was no less powerful.
In this war, however, the only power worth anything was that which defeated enemies.
“I ask that you have patience. It is hardly his fault that he is delayed.” He dabbed delicately at a cut on his cheek, as if destruction did not await them beyond his window. “Surely you have noticed the topography of this island. Hidden among the dense foliage nobody knows our little haven exists. For now let us enjoy each other’s company.”
The suggestion was ridiculous to Rambatan’s ears. “Life diminishes around us. The world, for which humanity has toiled, will cease. And you are asking us to enjoy each other’s company? Preposterous. You have invited each of us here for a reason.”
“Yes,” Kurosawa hedged carefully. “Maybe you should explain why we are here.” His dark eyes flickered to the sheaf of papers Niklas held in his elegant hands.
A maddening smirk twisted Aldford’s handsome face. “And what if I told you that I called you all here for a last game of chess? I call white.”
Silence.
“I’m quite shattered. Evidently you do not find my humour amusing.”
At the incredulous expressions on his companions’ faces, his smile faded.
“Alright,” he conceded. “My friends–” a pause “–I have asked you here today because you are, each of you, brilliant. Successful. Powerful. Capable of heading a new world order devoid of this ugly war. Nations united under peace, guided by men and women-” his gaze flickered to Rambatan “–with the resources and intelligence to head the entire world.”
Again, silence, but it was not a frustrated hush that claimed them.
“Im…possible.” de Moretti managed, his eyes darting to the others as though to gauge their own reactions.
Rambatan was not impressed. “What stupid game are you playing at, Aldford? Under what basis do we have the right to ‘rule the world?’ Because that is certainly what you are suggesting. A totalitarian system – it cannot succeed.” Her country had not been freed from its oppression half a millennium ago to be governed by an arrogant Russian and his two yes-men. And yet –
“There would not be a world to speak of if we do nothing at all,” Kurosawa mused quietly. His eyes gleamed brightly. Perhaps it was the lantern’s flame playing tricks.
“Shouldn’t we take a – a vote?” de Moretti tugged at his collar.
Aldford sneered. “Democracy, you mean? The world leaders asked their countries to choose and the majority agreed to fight a war that should not have been their own. The people are too blinded by their morals. ‘You cannot play God,’ they say, and yet, they are destroying the very thing they are fighting to save.” His laugh was cold. “Of course, many opposed. But, in democracy, only majority matters.”
“And here, only your word matters.” Rambatan folded her arms across her chest.
“Ours,” de Moretti interjected.
Kurosawa ignored them. “How do we propose we achieve such a thing, Aldford-sama?”
Rambatan snorted at his reference to the vain Russian in the highly respectful form. As far as she was concerned, Niklas Aldford had not earned her respect and his mad proposition did nothing to alter her unflattering views.
The whir of propellers sounded overhead. For his part, Aldford remained calm. His face betrayed no emotion and he spoke as if the noise outside were a mere hum, nothing more.
“We have the resources. The Kurosawa technology is quite revolutionary -” Kurosawa flushed with pleasure “- and de Moretti’s various medical qualifications certainly make him qualified to establish the necessary facilities for our new world. Of course, let us not forget the Aldford and Rambatan wealth. After all, the Rambatans own the entire continent of Australia, as useless and uninhabited as the land has been for well over a millennium. There we will create an underground sanctuary of sorts, housing millions of the population of our dying world. We will bide our time until the war has ended and, once safety is guaranteed, we will establish an entirely new world order on that island alone, protected and isolated from the insanity and ruin that surrounds its borders.”
de Moretti’s eyes widened in disbelief. He bit his lip, uncertain. “We are going to let humanity destroy the world? And then we are going to recreate it?”
“Precisely.”
“It is insanity.” Rambatan cursed beneath her breath. “If this is all you wish to say, I will take my leave.” She moved to take her jacket from her seat but Aldford’s reflexes were too quick.
“Stay a little, Rashida Rambatan. Are you not honoured that I have invited you? Even a little curious? You, from a nation barely able to stand on its own, among many other men and women with equal prestige and wealth.”
His face barely concealed a sneer as he released his grip on her wrist.
“Do you not wonder why? It is because your people, the people of Africa, refuse to follow men like Jarvis de Moretti or myself. Understandable, considering the days of the World Bank. Preposterous to believe that they will follow Yukio Kurosawa. His country tried to annihilate them in the Great Africa-Asia War of 2570, if you remember the history. But they will follow you, Rashida Rambatan. Do you not wish to save them? You will be exalted as a great leader – a Nelson Mandela of sorts. You have the chance to lead your people to freedom.”
He paused, searching for something she did not know was there. And found it.
“Take it.”
His words hung in the stifling air. She felt that she would choke on them. Slowly, she allowed herself to sink into her seat, her face pale. She could not deny her country its liberation.
A sharp click caused de Moretti to whirl around in his seat. He came face-to-face with a barrel of a gun, aimed right at the middle of his forehead. Fear made his body quiver.
Aldford chuckled, aware that another presence had entered the room. “You’re late.”
A man was cast in shadow, untouched by the waning lantern light. Save for the hand that kept the Sig Sauer p226 pressed against de Moretti’s head. It was an advanced war being fought on the mainland but one did not need advanced technology to kill a lone man.
Aldford placed an elegant hand on the barrel of the gun and angled it away from his companion’s forehead. For a moment he let it linger by de Moretti’s ribcage, where his heart pumped like a piston. But only for a moment.
de Moretti expelled a breath.
“Now, now,” the Russian chided playfully. For the first time his tone resembled something akin to affection. “We are among allies here.” He turned toward his companions. “My friends, I am pleased to introduce to you the man who saved me from the assassination attempts of ten years prior. I owe him my life. Gregovich Radeschi.”
A man stepped forward, careful in step, resonating a cold fury. His tone was clipped, his eyes hunted like those of an animal that had been caged for too long. A face that should have been handsome if not for the experience that it bore.
de Moretti gasped, his beady eyes widening in recognition.
“Yes,” Aldford eyed the Italian with a mixture of amusement and condescension. “You may remember him, Jarvis de Moretti. He used to work as a guardsman for the Teodora de la Durante Research Facility. Until, of course, your clever team of genetic engineers decided to use him as your, for lack of a better word, lab rat. I am well aware of your procedures but I’m certain the others are keen to gain a better understanding as to why - ” he paused, searching for the words “- why so many of their people are fighting this ridiculous war.”
Aldford steepled his fingers, waiting expectantly.
de Moretti had no choice.
“We – we were working on the alteration of DNA,” he stammered hesitantly, edging further away from Radeschi’s powerful form. His chair bumped into Rambatan’s, who listened with growing horror. “Leading scientists from continents all over the world convened – Africa, Asia, Oceania, South America, Europe, all of them – all seeking a way for an individual to impart artificially induced traits to their descendants. We would have made super men and women, capable of tapping into a paranormal capability that is not of our world. We –”
“Tried to play God,” Rambatan finished quietly. “And tell me, de Moretti, did you succeed? Is this war justified?” Her voice begged him to say yes – yes, so her people had suffered for a reason, at the very least.
de Moretti hung his head. “I – I don’t know. As far as our results went, we only managed to induce X-linked traits. Genetics and gender will always interfere with their inheritance. On approximation, we experimented on ten thousand subjects throughout the past decade. Of those ten thousand, one third were unable to withstand our…alterations during the earlier tests. However,” he paused, unsure what reaction his next words would incur. “After I left my team, after this war began, many more were put beneath the microscope, so to speak. I fear, despite the war, hundreds of scientists may have been adamant to continue the project underground.”
“X-linked.” Kurosawa mused. His expertise in science lent him a greater understanding of the matter. “Centuries from now, as genetics permits, this trait will be possessed by more than half of the world’s population.” His frown deepened, trench-like lines appearing along his golden forehead. “Assuming anybody survives this war. You have created mutants. Destroyed lives. Kisama,” he spat. “You are the reason for this disgusting war. Adolf Hitler played your game too.”
de Moretti’s eyes flared. Years of dedication, an unwavering commitment that had lead to the breakdown of his marriage…and it had all come down to this – this ignorant condemnation.
“Do not dare liken us to an anti-Semitist madman who forced his ideals upon the world. Our project aimed to enhance it, to provide a quality of life the people of the twentieth century could only hope to dream about. Our participants gave us their full consent, to be utilised as we pleased and, I can assure you, they were suitably compensated.”
“And the fatalities? Do you consider death, impaired functioning a valuable quality of life?”
The Italian faltered. “I – every breakthrough must first have its miscalculations, its errors. One cannot surmise the extent of one’s accomplishment until it is put to the test. And then one must refine, retest, refine until it is flawless, perfect. Only then is it truly a breakthrough. For every scientific advancement there will always be a cost, sacrifices that- ”
“Sacrifices,” Radeschi roared, slamming his fist against the table. The wood reverberated at the sheer fury of his one action. “You claim you were given full consent. Goddamn you, we did not know that there would be risks, that many of us would die. Your money -” he spat out the word “- is insufficient compensation – if you can call it thus. You deserve no less than death and I will gladly be the one who deals you your sentence.” With a deft movement, he reached for his gun. “I should not have let Aldford stop me before.”
Rambatan rose quickly, her chair scraping against the floor as she moved to placate the incensed man. She placed soothing hands against his shoulders, applying enough pressure to mollify him.
“Stop,” she pleaded. “We cannot afford to act in violence. What will you achieve by killing him? No, we cannot undo the world’s mistakes, our mistakes by repeating them. For the sake of our people we must do what we deem best. For this reason alone I support Aldford’s proposal. For my people, and my people only, Aldford, I will join you.”
“I had a feeling you might.” Aldford’s eyes flickered around the table questioningly, all too aware of the hostility that crackled over them all. “And the others?”
The men remained silent: Radeschi, still seething, and de Moretti, wary. A pregnant pause ensued before Kurosawa cleared his throat.
“An ambitious idea but one I will support wholeheartedly. I would be honoured if you allowed me to head the team that will turn your vision into reality.” He bowed his head in near-reverence, Rambatan noted with contempt.
Aldford clapped his hands. “Then it is settled.”
He produced a parchment of paper and slid it across the table for the others to see, though the lantern’s light was already waning.
“The realistic will see it as a contract. The idealistic will see it as an alliance. See it as you please.”
Aldford’s name had already been signed in his elegant script. Everything about him was elegant. Even the cold smile that twisted his handsome face.
Kurosawa signed his name, not needing further explanation. A future of wealth, of success, of leadership to a world that would not - he would make sure of it - let him down. He had already forgotten his Japan.
de Moretti signed with a shaky hand, aware of the anger and condescension that emanated from his companions. But it was better, far better, than to die with the rest of his genetic engineering team. He was a coward and had never pretended that he wasn’t.
Rambatan was resigned to her fate. She did not wish to deal with these ugly, ambitious men. Already, she sensed that she would be thrust into a man’s world of lies, deceit and power. For her country, she signed.
Radeschi fingered the gun, tempted to dispense retribution and blow a hole through de Moretti’s head. Instead, he took the quill and signed the parchment, sealing the world’s fate.
Another loud explosion tore apart the night.
The flickering light of a lone oil lantern sputtered, then died. Casting five faces into darkness.
PLEASE keep in mind that this is FICTION. Merely a work of MY imagination. NO characters are based on people I know.
However, if I have gotten anything wrong considering anything of great importance, please don’t hesitate to let me know.
X-linked Traits
Women are usually only ‘carriers’ of the genotype (the actual genes) for the X-linked trait, but the men, when they have it, will show the phenotype(the physical appearance of it) for it. This is because such a trait is found in the X chromosome and a male has only one. The Y chromosome is much shorter than the X chromosome and is not able to counter the effects of the allele (type of gene.) So, even if a man does not have an X-linked trait, but he marries a woman who carries it (this does not mean that she has it, either) 50 percent of the couple’s sons (or 25 percent of their offspring) will display the effect of the allele. For example, if X’ is the allele that carries the trait, the table below will show the effects in the offspring.
...,...X’ X
X X’X X’X
Y X’Y XY
Note: although it is shown that both female offspring carry the X’ allele, they will not show characteristics of the trait as X is more dominant than X’.
A female will only show the characteristics if both parents carry the X’ chromosome. This means that the mother has to be the carrier and the father has to have the trait.
...,...,.X' X
X’ X’X’ X’X’
Y X’Y XY
As is shown, this means that 75 percent of the couple’s offspring will end up displaying the characteristics of the X-linked trait.
When a woman and man reproduce, and both display the X-linked trait, all offspring will possess the trait.
...,...,.X’ X'
X’ X’X’ X’X’
Y X’Y X’Y
This is very crucial to the story.
Glossary
Some of these names will mean something to the story. Others just sounded nice, but I gave you their meanings anyway. I also included words from other languages that I used in this story and organisations that you may not know.
Aldford: ‘old ford’; old way. Pronounced old-ford
European Union: Established in 1992, it is (currently) made up of 25 member-states, working under a common single market with the same currency, addressing health, foreign affairs, defence, economic policy, etc. In my terms, a group of countries in Europe who ‘have each other’s backs.’
furenzu: friends. Japanese
hidoi: terrible. Japanese
International Monetary Fund: An international organisation concerned with the global financial system. It monitors exchange rates and the balance of payments. Like the World Bank
Jarvis: driver; Pronounced yar-vis
kisama: ‘you bastard.’ In actual fact, it is only an extremely derogatory way of saying ‘you’ in Japanese, but this is as bad as their swears get.
Moretti: dark-skinned in Latin. Pronounced more-et-ee
Niklas: victory of the people. Pronounced nick-less
Rashida: righteous. Pronounced rah-she-duh
World Bank: An organisation created after World War II which concentrates on foreign exchange reserves and the balance of trade. It aims to stop poverty by lending money to Third-World countries. It’s a nice concept but, in my opinion, fails to do what it intends: help the Third-World countries. This is because they merely lend money to these countries. The Third-World countries will spend centuries trying to pay off the interest alone. Let alone the debt.
Yukio: gets what he wants. Pronounced you-kyo
Statistics
Untrue. Spawned from what I thought would be suitable to the story.
Events
No, the World Bank and International Monetary Fund have not collapsed. Europe still exists. I am not psychic, so I doubt that there will be a ‘Great Africa-Asia War’ of 2570 and, as far as I know (and I should know seeing as I live there lol), Australia is still pretty useful and inhabitated. events and possibly many other events mentioned later on are made up to suit the story.
As I’ve mentioned in my profile, a lot of my stories are currently undergoing revision (A Cliché Waiting to Happen, for example already has 3 of its revised chapters up) and I am trying desperately to juggle all of my stories along with my schoolwork and extracurricular activities. This story has been in my head since 2002 (although it started out as a work of fanfiction and progressed into something more complicated) so I just wanted the chance to be able to share this.