THE FAMILY THAT PREYS

Part I: Facts of Life

By Stuart Fairchild

Vancouver, Canada

“Who’s the suit?”

“Don’t know and don’t care right now.”

“Good, cuz he’s headin’ this way.”

“Great,” the police officer replied.

“Detective Jackson,” the man asked, his freshly pressed gray suit suggesting a government affiliation.

“That’s me,” he answered, tossing his cigarette o the ground.

“I’m Agent Brown. Department of Defense. I’m here to check out the body.”

“What for?” he asked, looking closely at the badge presented to him. “The man that died was a police officer in my precinct. The way I see it, that makes it police business.”

“I have people that actually will say it was my business once I arrived on scene.”

The officer huffed, not caring about bureaucratic hierarchy. “I can care less about you government types. I worked with the detective for years. He was like a brother. He told me everything.”

“I highly doubt that, Detective.”

“You son of a…”

“Jackson,” The other officer shouted, redirecting the detective with a firm placed hand. “Let the man do his job.”

“Tell me what happened,” Agent Brown asked.

“I came by the detective’s house as I usually do on the weekend. Normal routine, watch the Canucks and down some Blues.”

“Of course,” Agent Brown uttered, rolling his eyes.

“I found it kinda odd that he didn’t answer any of my calls. When I got here, it looked normal from the outside but the door was unlocked.”

“That’s when you made entry into the house?” Agent Brown asked, looking carefully at the interior of the house as they proceeded inward.

“Correct,” the officer replied, turning the corner reluctantly. “That’s when I found him like this.”

“Oh my,” Agent Brown said, looking at a man, hands tied in a chair, throat slit while his intestines hung from his abdomen. Agent Brown proceeded in the room, unfazed by the lingering smell that filled the room.

“It takes one sick sadist bastard to do something like this to a good man. We always say watch your back, but to go out like this is not normal.”

“I highly agree, Detective Jackson,” Agent Brown replied, approaching the pool of blood that bathed the rug he walked on.

“What you doin’?”

“My job,” Agent Brown answered, kneeling slowly while pulling a device from his coat that quickly pierced the skin of the lifeless body. He didn’t say a word but he didn’t have too. The sorrow in his eyes as he exited the room indicated to the police in the room that Agent Brown knew something that they did not.

“Where you goin’?” Detective Jackson asked as he followed.

“This is Agent Brown calling from location,” he said worriedly on his cell. “It’s a positive match. It’s him.”

“Hey,” Detective Jackson shouted as he clutched Agent Brown’s arm. “Whatcha know?”

Agent Brown looked at the Detectives’ hold, calculating seven different ways to elude the grasp but the look in the burly man’s eyes prevented him. “It’s above your pay grade, Detective.”

“That man in there was my friend. I want to know!”

Agent Brown looked at the house as numerous police officers began to gather, wanting to know answers themselves as the two men exchanged words. “You and everyone else will need to fill out a confidentiality agreement.”

Detective Jackson nodded in agreement.

“You heard of Alpha Flight?”

“Of course,” Detective Jackson replied at the mention of Canada’s super hero team.

“Your friend Sean Benard helped start the program; a super hero type. He had a brief tenure, but he helped stop some whack jobs from torching the United States. No one knew what he did because the program was still hush-hush back then. He left shortly after.”

“Sean,” Detective Jackson replied in disbelief.

“You think he told you everything now, Detective?”

“I can’t believe it,” Detective Jackson said, still amazed by the revelation.

“You’re not supposed too,” Agent Brown responded. “From this point on, everything that happens here is considered classified by order of the Canadian Department of Defense.”

Department H

Heather Hudson had been a member of Alpha Flight for sometime. In all her years within Department H, the men that occupied the position of Alpha Flight liaison were less then endearing; that was until he arrived. The man she knew as Mr. Gentry brought a much-needed overhaul to previous regimes. An open door policy was implemented, bringing her to the very door of the man she had grown to respect. She knocked, hoping to discuss her situation with someone; she just hoped it wouldn’t tear her apart in the process.

“Come in,” Mr. Gentry said firmly.

“You have time to talk,” Heather asked, poking her head around the ajar door.

Gentry looked at the Alpha known as Vindicator, moving mounds of paper work aside. “I do now.”

Heather walked in, took a seat across Gentry’s desk and said nothing. There was an odd silence as Gentry could see the conflict within Heather.

“Something bothering you,” Gentry asked.

“I wanted to talk about my place on the team,” she blurted.

Gentry carefully looked at Heather, “This talk is regarding your daughter.”

Heather silently nodded in agreement.

“I was expecting to have this conversation sooner,”

“You did,” Heather asked.

“Each member of Alpha Flight is their own individual. Each has their own reason motivating them for their participation. The thing that separates you from the others is that you are now a parent. As a parent, you assume responsibilities for your child. You want to see them grow up and accomplish things. You want to guide them through the good and hopefully aid them through the bad. In your case, you calculate battling super villains bent on destroying the world into your life. Most times you guys come back, but the reality is, sometimes you don’t, and that bothers you as a mother.”

Heather remained silent, a tear dribbling down her cheek at the thought.

“I’m sorry, Gentry.”

“What do you have to be sorry for, Heather? Look outside this window,” Gentry said, gazing upon many in the program below. “You want to know what I see. I see your husband’s dream in full effect. It is a dream that you helped build during James’ absence. I can’t take credit for any of this. You were the glue in Alpha Flight when everyone wanted to shutdown and call it quits. You have done so much for Department H and this country that it is about time you look after yourself.”

“Thank you,” Heather replied.

“No, thank you,” Gentry responded, extending a box of handkerchiefs to Heather as he sat on his desk.

“I just wish there was a way that I could help.”

“If you’re interested, I do have something.”

Level 22

“What do you see?”

Madison eyes drew closed, his breathing a shallow reminder as he thought of the question, “I’m with them.”

“Who,” the doctor asked.

“The Zodiac,” he said, vivid memories flooding his thoughts.

“Then what happens?”

“There is a loud crash. I see dust everywhere. Shots are fired and in the chaos, I am grabbed and taken away”

“That was the Epsilons. They were sent to retrieve you.”

“I know.”

“What else can you tell me?”

Madison struggled at the question, attempting to recall the distant memory he can barely remember, “I hear a voice.”

“What does the voice say?”

“The voice is saying not to leave,” he said, unsure of his answer.

“Do you know who is saying this?”

Madison shook his head, “No”

“Do you remember anything else said during the event?”

Faces appear in his memory but vanish before he gets a chance to analyze them. “I can’t remember.”

“Interesting,” replied the doctor.

The session continued until Doctor Simon appeared from the door to talk to Madison’s wife, Diamond Lil. She greeted the tall heroine, noticing two others accompanying her presence in the room.

“What you got doc?” Diamond Lil asked.

“Your husband seems completely over his Gemini persona. Department H seems to have restructured his psyche. Outside of the voice he remembers from his rescue, the Madison Jeffries you see is no different then the man before his abduction.”

“Its good to hear something came out of General Clarke’s tenure,” Sasquatch replied.

“You referring to the mind alterations some of you subjected too?” Doctor Simon asked.

“It was the only way Clarke could keep us in check,” Guardian said, disgusted at the mention of the name and events.

Doctor Simon shook her head at the notion, “I can not even fathom the depths of his workings.”

“I stopped thinking about his work after he tried to kill me. The bastard tried to jettison me into space but I ended up in Antarctica.”

A strange look appeared on the doctor, “That isn’t much of a consolation.”

“It is when you’re discovered by Walter by mere chance. Of course, I would rather have been rescued by Heather …or Jeanne-Marie …or Narya.”

“You weren’t complaining when we defrosted you,” Sasquatch replied.

Guardian smiled, “Hypothermia can do that to people”

“Pay no attention to the male machismo, Doctor Simon,” Diamond Lil said.

“I never do,” she said with a giggle.

“We have to come back?”

“That’s completely up to Madison,” the doctor said as the man himself exited the room.

He greeted his friends with a smile, kissing his wife, “Any of you guys hungry?”

Ground Zero

“This training session is going to be cake,” Radius said, yawning with boredom.

“I’m sure it will be beneficial to our development, Jared.”

“You can call me Radius, Mapleleaf. Only my friends call me Jared.”

“You have friends, Corbo?” Earthmover asked.

“You got jokes, Chucky.”

“I thought it was humorous,” Major Mapleleaf said with a chuckle.

“Zuzha, check your boyfriend.”

“Stop calling Sadler my boyfriend, jackass,” Zuzha Yu responded, annoyed by the comment.

“I’m just saying.”

“I don’t want to hear what you are saying. It’s never any good, eh.”

“Zuzha may have a point, Corbo,” Earthmover responded.

“What point?” Flex asked, accompanied by the rest of Gamma Flight into the training yard.

“What the hell is Gamma Flight doing here?” Radius asked, visibly annoyed by his brother’s appearance. “Didn’t you guys embarrass yourselves earlier?”

The feral Goblyn snarled at Radius’ bravado, gaining the older Corbo’s attention, causing a few snickers.

“I hate that thing,” Radius said in disgust.

“We were told to report to the field with Beta Flight,” Ghost Girl responded, calming Goblyn’s growl with a few well-placed strokes to her head.

“Damn it, another joint training mission where my younger brother messes things up.”

WCH-CHK “Adrian Corbo’s training assessment has improved thirteen percent since last review.” CHK

“Thanks, Manbot.”

“That’s just great; a soda dispenser is sticking up for you, Adrian.”

“I s-e-e much good from this day,” Ouija said.

“Ouija, zee talks funny to me,” Murmur said with a confused gaze.

“I k-n-o-w, Murmur,” Ouija replied, aware of his unattended mannerism.

“Either way you guys present it, Beta Flight is mopping the floor against you. You guys just aren’t ready yet,” Radius said.

“That wont be for much longer, Jared,” a voice called out.

“Vindicator,” the team shouted.

The long time Alphan approached, her facial expression revealing the seriousness of her appearance even under her swaying red hair and the visor she wore with the Vindicator suit. She looked upon the many recruits she had known through the years, wondering were they ever that young. Her gaze bore into each member, each of them standing silent out of respect as she searched of what to say to them.

“From now on, there is a new way Department H trains their trainees. It’s called my way. The days of pitting yourself against a programmed machine is over. You guys flopping around aimlessly in the training room, all but forgotten. Everything you guys experience will be because I thought of it. You are the next generation of Canada’s defense. It’s about time you start acting like it. You guys need to be ready even if Alpha Flight isn’t. Trust me guys; the world is a crazy place out there. You guys will be ready for it, like it or not.”

Level 66

“You don’t smile much, Gentry.”

“I don’t have to, Proctor.” Gentry replied, his focus on the ascending levels within the elevator.

“I guess you’re right. You do your job, I do mine.”

“There lies the problem. I don’t trust what you do,”

“Touché,” Proctor said with a smile, softly clapping at the reply.

“I don’t see how the Director does either.”

“We all have our reasons.”

Gentry briefly glanced at his department counterpart, “I don’t like secrets.”

“We all have them,” Proctor grinned. “Some bigger then others, though.”

The two exchanged a silent gaze, only to end by the sound of the opening elevator doors. Gentry exited first only to stop a few steps inward, questioning the absence of Epsilon Blacks to their arrival.

“We were supposed to meet in his office, right?”

“We wouldn’t be able to ride the lift up here if we weren’t,” Proctor replied, sharing Gentry’s sentiment.

“Something isn’t right,” Gentry said, his eyes examining the area.

“Dead Epsilon Blacks,” Proctor announced, not finding any signs of a struggle outside the main door. “We have a breach.”

Gentry nodded, pressing his com, “This is Holland Gentry. Initiate security shutdown,” Gentry ordered as he proceeded further. “You find the Director?”

There was a moment of silence as Proctor entered the Director’s office. “He’s dead.”

“Who could have done this?” Gentry asked, approaching the scene.

“Don’t know,” Proctor replied, his attention shifting away from the body. “They downloaded information from his terminal.”

“Like what?”

“Everything.”