Chapter Twenty-Seven
“What about my father?” Gabriel’s heart skipped a beat.
“Damn it, Osho.” Nate glared at the doctor.
“Nathaniel, I understand your desire to keep him safe, but he deserves to know.” Dr. Osho put his hand on Gabriel’s shoulder. “I’m sure Calvin regretted never being able to tell him himself. Let’s speak in my office.”
Gabriel still leaned on Nate. He could barely walk as he stepped out into the hall.
“You alright?” Nate let him stand a bit on his own.
“What did Dad have to do with him?” Gabriel wanted to know.
Nate didn’t say a thing, he glanced back into the room and huffed, clearly annoyed at Osho.
“Nate.” Gabriel stared at him.
“This was a conversation I did not want to have.” Nate stared back at him.
“Why not?” Gabriel demanded.
“Because you’re like your father.” Nate half-smiled. “You’re not one to walk away from a fight.”
What did Nate mean by that?
Osho exited the room as several members of a medical team arrived. “I want someone in there at all times. Update me regularly.” He waved them inside to Kyrie. “You two follow me.”
A short walk later, they entered Dr. Osho’s office again. Gabriel couldn’t wait any longer. “How do you know my father?”
“Calvin and I started this whole place after he discovered the ore in what used to be Iran. This research facility is owned by the Ingenis Pluris.” Osho smiled at him and shut the door. “The IP has been continuing your father’s research since his death. I haven’t seen you since you were a little boy, sitting in your father’s lap.”
“I don’t understand.” Gabriel quickly took a seat in front of the desk. Nate sat beside him. “Why wasn’t I told?”
Nate sighed. “Your mother wanted to keep you and your brother safe, and she felt the only way was to never be a part of this again. She didn’t want anything to happen to you boys, and she knew you would be at risk if you were connected in any way to what your father did. I moved in to watch over the family. Your dad wanted to make sure everyone was safe.”
“Safe from whom?”
“Dr. Cymru. From TERA.” Nate’s response was blunt.
Gabriel sighed. “Adin.”
“Yeah,” Nate reached out and gripped Gabriel’s knee, “we know.”
Gabriel rolled his eyes. “I left him there.”
“You didn’t have a choice.” Nate shrugged.
“Dr. Cymru knew about your father, which means he knew there was a possibility that you and Adin might have inherited his unique connection to the ore.” Dr. Osho cleared his throat and settled in behind his desk.
“Connection? What are you talking about? I’m the one with the crystal in my chest, not Adin. And Dad died from accidental ore radiation! What are you talking about?”
Nate stared at him. “Your father was like you. He was immune to the ore’s effects. It could not have killed him.”
He stared at Nate. “You’re saying Dr. Cymru killed him?”
“No … the man’s a coward. But he most definitely had a hand in it.” Nate’s nostrils flared.
Osho sighed. “Once the ore was found, it didn’t take long for Cymru’s good intentions of helping humanity to give way to a hunger for power and control. Calvin disagreed with the choice of direction. The experiments Cymru conducted on people were horrid. His desire to become like Calvin drove him to do unspeakable things. The kidnappings and illegal experiments became too much for your dad. He broke away from Cymru and started working on his own research. He started to pass vital information to me. He then began to send me shipments of ore – just a single crystal or two for study. We needed to increase our knowledge and test our theories. It got riskier as he redirected more and more shipments, off-loading some of the ore before the shipments got to their true destination. Soon afterwards, his ‘accident’ happened.” Osho sighed. “Gabriel, your father didn’t die due to exposure of the ore. Someone had him killed.”
Gabriel stared at the floor in silence, his mind whirling as he tried to process this new information. Too many ‘what ifs’ filled him. He didn’t understand. Why didn’t his father just leave, why risk everything? He felt numb.
“Look,” Nate put a hand on his shoulder, “I loved your dad. He was my best friend. I hated his decision as much as anyone, but I can see now that he needed to do this for all of us. He didn’t want his discovery to be what enslaved all of mankind to a corrupt few. He needed to put things right.” Nate turned and opened his arms to their surroundings. “Look around you! It made a difference. This whole organization fights for the same thing he did. We are searching every day for ways to utilize the ore safely. I know you don’t understand this now, but in time you’ll see how his decision shaped our future. Sooner or later you’re going to have to accept that what he did was right. Be proud of that!”
“Does Adin know the truth?” He continued to stare at the floor.
“Your brother chose his own path. Did he know everything? No. But your mother believed he knew enough to decide for himself. And I think that she thought he would be safer working with TERA then against them. Especially with Dr. Cymru so interested in him.” Nate rubbed the short beard on his face.
Osho shifted at his desk, stood up and came around to lean against the front of it. “I examined you when you first arrived. The crystal seemed to be inactive, but you were stable. I figured you had a connection to it, but I never would have guessed how much. Your father had a special reaction to the ore as well. When he first went to the discovery site, he said it was as if he could feel the ore beneath the ground, as if it called to him.”
Gabriel looked up at the doctor. “Could he control it?”
Osho shrugged. “I don’t know. The ore’s energy acted like a homing signal to him. When it ‘called’, he felt it. He was meant to find it – no one else. Soon after the first chunks of ore were unearthed, we found out about its negative effects. Many of the initial team were quite weakened by the ore and had to leave the site. Some even died. But your father could handle it without any protection. That’s why the ‘accident’ at TERA didn’t make any sense. Your father could not have died from ore exposure. Soon afterwards, messages started to arrive from Calvin – he had planned for his own death. I followed his instructions and strengthened the IP. Calvin knew Cymru was consumed by his relationship to the ore. No matter how much time Cymru spent studying the ore, Calvin always knew it better. He demanded to study your father – to find the secret in his DNA, but your father refused and Cymru was enraged. After that, their research began to go down separate paths. Cymru demanded that Calvin turn over his findings. Of course, your father refused. Soon afterwards Calvin was discovered dead.”
“What was Dad researching that was so important to Dr. Cymru?”
“The white and black ore. The white ore was one of the rarer finds Calvin unearthed. If I remember correctly, there were only a couple of crystals found in total and all in the same small area. We assumed they were part of a larger piece that broke.” Osho moved back to his chair. “Calvin removed them from TERA without much of a problem as they didn’t seem to have any power. I see now it had a different purpose. It needed something. A master. A symbiote.” Osho smiled at him. “You.”
Gabriel sat silent, pondering Dr. Osho’s words. Why me?
“The black ore is a mystery as well. Calvin had made a breakthrough, but his discovery died with him, unfortunately.” Nate shrugged.
“How much do you know about TERA’s activities?” Osho tilted his head at Gabriel.
“Well, just what Adin told me. He talked a lot about free energy and solving the energy crisis.” Gabriel frowned. “Why?”
Osho shifted in his chair. “Whether this comes as a shock or not, there are certain things you need to know about TERA’s operations. Everything they claim about the ore is a lie to hide their secrets. The ore
is not sustainable forever. It does not possess an unlimited source of power. The ore’s energy can be used up, and once that happens there is only one way to recharge it.” Osho cleared his throat. “The only known way to recharge the ore is to trade it for human life – something they have been practicing for years to keep the ore replenished. When a human is exposed to the ore, it slowly recharges itself, ultimately killing the person. It doesn’t produce dangerous radiation, the way Uranium does. It steals life energy. But TERA has made people believe that ore radiation is dangerous in order to account for the deaths that they bring about purposefully.” Osho drew a deep, angry breath. “Experiments were done on other life forms – lab rats, plants, bacteria – with no success. It is believed the ore draws on what is commonly known as our soul. The site in Iran where we found the ore was believed to have been the site of Eden. Many believe the ore effects were the curse that God placed on the Garden of Eden after man was banished from it.
“Dr. Cymru has been conducting experiments on humans and the ore ever since they discovered it. He’s been surgically implanting ore into individuals, trying to force some kind of evolution. Individuals such as yourself, and my daughter, are anomalies. Your genetic code is no different than Nate’s or mine, but you have an inherent relationship to the ore. Cymru is searching for the reason why. This makes you a target for not only them but others as well.”
Gabriel could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand up and a chill went down his spine. “Others?”
“The Church of Humanity, for one.” Nate looked at him.
Gabriel remembered the priests that tried to kill them. “Oh, I’ve already met them.”
“What?” Nate stared at him.
“They tried to kill me a week ago – I was saved by another ore user.” Gabriel looked back and forth between them. “She said I needed to find a Sphere. Does that mean anything to either of you?”
They shook their heads.
“I’ll put Kyrie on it once she’s up and about. If a Sphere exists, she’ll find it.” Nate grunted. “The Church hopes to use the ore for the good of mankind, but individuals like yourself are considered abominations. ‘Ore users’ as they’re called. For years, they have either exiled or executed the users they find, depending on their strength. Weaker users are called exiles and left to live out their lives with the monks; any contact with the ore is forbidden.”
“This is ultimately why we exist – to balance the equation.” Osho nodded at Nate. “Your father believed in a world where the ore would save us, not enslave us. We seek to find other means of re-energizing the ore without trading it for human life, to find harmony with mankind and the ore. The more the world uses the ore, the more people will need to die in order to keep it recharged. We need to break that cycle.”
“Gabriel.” Nate spoke up. “Back at the ranch – up in the loft – there was a strongbox. I went back to look for it, but it's missing. Do you remember seeing it?”
“Yeah, the chest is at Adin’s. I took it there after the storm. I didn’t think you were alive and it somehow seemed important.”
Nate breathed a sigh of relief, and sat back in his chair. “Smart. We need to get it before Cymru clues in that it’s there.” He looked meaningfully at Osho.
“Thank you for that information, Gabriel. We need to discuss some things in private. Could you excuse us?” Osho pointed to the door politely.
“Get some rest. We can talk more later.” Nate patted him on the shoulder.
Gabriel’s heart was heavy. The news of what had happened to his father just seemed surreal. He wished Nate would have told him before, but he understood Nate’s reasons. Everything was too connected. Gabriel wandered back to his room after a dinner alone in the small cafeteria. Evening had already passed and the facility was bathed in the light of a new moon. It cast an eerie glow along the white walls. Everything was quiet as he approached his room. He paused a moment at the door to Kyrie’s room then, looking behind him, he slid into the room. The clear tent was gone from over her bed and only a single machine remained.
“Kyrie?” He spoke softly. “You awake?”
“Yes.” She smiled widely at the sound of his voice. “Sneaking around, are we?”
“Ah … it’s late. I just wanted to know how you were doing.” He came over to the bed.
“Much better, thanks to you.” She breathed deeply.
He smiled, glad the room was dark.
“So … you’re Gabriel Roberts, Uncle Calvin’s son.”
“Uncle?” He blinked.
“Sort of …” She giggled. “Your dad was around a lot.”
What? He was shocked. He’d spent time enough with her to be called ‘uncle’ when he was never home?
“He came to see my father a lot when I was growing up. I would sit on the floor playing as they talked about the ore, TERA, and the IP.” She smiled. “He was the one who found out I had a relationship to the green ore.”
“Really?” He forgot about his jealousy and listened to her story.
“Yes, he had a small shard in his bag one day when he came over, and I found it. He came out and I was playing with it. I remember that he just watched as a scrape on my knee healed over in minutes. Your father felt responsible, you know, for finding the ore and giving it over to TERA. All the horrible things Dr. Cymru did were because of what he had discovered. That defined everything he did. He wanted to change the ore’s fate.”
Gabriel sighed loudly. “And he died for it. Not sure how that changed anything for the good.”
“But it did.” She rolled to her side to face him, carefully moving her IV out of the way. “His death had a purpose … just like your life has a purpose.”
“Purpose? Hah!” He looked away. “Things are a mess; I don’t even know which way is up lately. You know, a couple of weeks ago all I had to do was pick a college … that was the biggest decision in my life. Now … I don’t have any purpose …”
“You do have a purpose … and a purpose gives you direction. Just remember that and you will know which way to go.” She leaned back comfortably on her pillow and closed her eyes with a slight grin on her face.
He stood there in silence, thinking about everything that had happened in the last month. Was there truly a purpose in all of it? His heart was heavy and thoughts of Adin crept in. Had he abandoned his brother to TERA? Gabriel felt like a twig caught in a strong river – swept along from one danger to another with no hopes of finding a path.
“Kyrie?” He looked over at her.
“Hmmm.” She was drifting to sleep.
“Goodnight.” He left the room quietly.
Lying on his back in his own room, he rested his hand on the cool edge of the ore in his chest. Feeling too exhausted to find any more answers, he drifted off to sleep.