Chapter Text
“Sir it seems that we made a mistake in our calculations.” There was an eerie silence in the dim room as a scientist in a bright, pristine white lab coat slowly made his way inside. The only light source was coming from a large monitor that almost took up the entirety of the back wall. On the monitor, a map of the world was pulled up with several indistinguishable charts and a timer that was steadily ticking down. “The location the meteorite should have made an impact with has changed considerably.”
“What do you mean by that?” A gruff voice responded. The scientist swallowed and his attention turned from the monitor to the chair facing in front of it. He could see the hand of the person sitting there, fingers drumming against the arm of the chair in a clear sign of irritation. “I thought your job was to predict the crash zone with precision.”
“We thought we did…but it seems that things have changed now.” The scientist walked up beside the chair and glanced over to the side. He was met with a glaring stare from green eyes. He jumped a little, quickly staring back at the monitor. “As you know we had originally predicted that the meteor would fall in Japan…” He pulled out a small remote and zoomed in on the map to the country of Japan, a red circle marked over Mt. Fuji, where the meteorite was originally predicted to land.
“What changed?”
“I’m not quite sure…none of us are really. But whatever happened, the location of the meteorite has changed from Japan...” He pressed a button and the map shifted quickly, “...to Italy....” The map stopped and a red circle appeared over the peninsula country. “We predict that it will strike the Apennine mountain region, near the Corno Grande Mountain.”
“You do realize this has caused a major setback in my plans…” The tone of the man’s voice dropped to one of aggravation. The scientist felt shivers running down his spine.
“S-Sorry sir…but I’m certain we can still work with these conditions.” The scientist gripped onto the remote in his hands nervously, as a heavy silence fell in the room. He almost felt the weight of the atmosphere on his shoulders.
“We will have no other choice.” Another moment of silence. “See to it that nothing like this happens again. And see to it that the area the meteor will fall is locked down. No civilians or officials other than our own are to get anywhere near this…”
“Yes sir.” The scientist gave a small bow and turned quickly to leave the room, his heart pounding in his chest harder than a drum.
In the quiet room, sharp green eyes stared at the monitor as a button on the side of the chair was pressed. A few moments passed quietly before a voice spoke.
“Yes, my Lord?”
“I have a new task for you…”
“You know I usually do not leave my home and my duties on such short notice, especially if it requires me to come to the mainland…this business you have called me on better be important.” An older woman with long silver hair gave a soft hum as she stared out the window of the car she was currently in. She watched the road and the scenery as it passed.
“Ah yes, I know that you are a very busy woman. A hard to find woman as well.” Next to her sat a pale skinned man in a long black trench coat. His eyes were hidden behind pitch black sunglasses, so it was hard to tell exactly where he was looking.
“I don’t give my information out to just anyone now.” The woman smiled and her icy blue eyes glanced over at him. There was something about him that seemed off. He almost bled with suspicion, but her mind wasn’t about to question it. Right now, the only thing she could think about was why she was being brought out to the middle of seemingly nowhere.
“Well I suppose it’s a good thing we had an associate of yours help us out.” The man gave a smile. “Otherwise it would have taken much longer to find you, Mrs. Campana.”
Mrs. Campana hummed softly and crossed her arms over her chest, her fingers drumming against the sleeve of her lavender coat. “I see…well I hope that this encounter is short lived.”
“I apologize for any inconvenience that this has caused you. I assure you as soon as we are finished here we will take you back to your…home.”
“Thank you, young man.” Mrs. Campana smiled and once again turned to look out the window. “Where are we headed to exactly? It feels like we’ve been driving for hours now, since you picked me up in Rome...”
“Don’t worry, we should be there soon enough.”
Mrs. Campana only nodded as she continued to stare out the window, her eyes transfixed on the high mountains and cliffs surrounding them. A while back they had veered from the main road onto this back road, which had been fenced off until their arrival. It was all very curious, but once again, she didn’t think about it.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity in the car with this very suspicious man, they stopped. The first thing that she noticed when she looked ahead was the entrance to a facility built into the mountain. It looked like it could potentially be a secret military facility, but if that were the case, then why was she brought here?
“What is this place…?”
“A facility that was built about six months ago. We’ve been doing some studies on a very valuable object here.” The man smiled as he got out of the car. Mrs. Campana narrowed her eyes questioningly before opening her door. She had barely placed her feet on the ground, when she heard a loud, boisterous voice.
“Giselle!!”
“Caesar!?” She turned her head as a man about the same age as she, with slicked back grey hair and a short cut beard, hurried over to her, his steps very energetic despite his apparent age. Once he stopped in front of her, he paused and took in several deep breaths.
“Giselle!” He gave Giselle a very unexpected hug, which made the woman’s eyes go wide in surprise. But, her surprised look quickly turned into that of happiness and she returned the hug gratefully. “Giselle it’s been years since we’ve seen each other!” He pulled away and kept his hands on her shoulders as he gazed into her icy blue eyes with his soft orange ones. “I see you’re still as lovely as ever though.”
Giselle chuckled and brought a hand up to cover her mouth. “And I see you haven’t changed a bit. You are still as boisterous as you were about twenty years ago. I suppose you are the one who told these people who I was?”
Caesar’s expression dropped, but only slightly. “Strangest thing about that, they were the ones who asked me about you. Apparently, they need your cooperation in this project that we’ve been working on for the last few months.”
“We?” Giselle tilted her head. Caesar gave a chuckle, rubbing the back of his head.
“Yes, well, who do you think gave them the mining equipment to help build this base here? You should see what these people have been working on Giselle…it’s…it’s absolutely fascinating.” There was a sparkle in those sunset colored eyes that made Giselle smile softly.
“Oh? And just what is this thing that they have been working on?”
“Well it’s hard to explain without you actually seeing it.” Caesar hummed as he pulled at the sleeves of his brown leather coat. “Something very special struck this mountain and they’ve been studying how they can use it to benefit humanity.”
“And they require me here for something like that…?”
“About that.” Another voice spoke up, this one deep and raspy. Giselle turned her head and met eyes with a tall, lanky man with a malicious smirk. “If you would come with me, we can explain more away from this dreadful outside…”
Giselle pursed her lips and moved behind Caesar. There was something about this strange man that she didn't like. Something about the look in his deep black eyes made her feel deeply uneasy.
“Yes…” Giselle gave a soft hum. “There is quite a chill out here…” She glanced over at Caesar who just grinned at her like an excited child. She could only figure that he wasn't as disturbed by the other man as she was.
The lanky man led them inside of the facility, and Giselle looked around curiously. The walls were tall and a bright, sterile white and the sound of her heels meeting the ground echoed off the equally white tiles.
“This place looks more sterile than a hospital.” Giselle looked around some more, the only things that weren’t white were the thick metal doors that they would occasionally pass. There were no windows, so she didn't have any idea as to what could lie on the other side, but she could hear the whirling and cankering from various machines and computers.
“Well we have to keep this place clean and bright. We are doing some very delicate work after all.” The lanky man turned back and gave a condescending smirk. Giselle narrowed her eyes and stepped a bit closer to Caesar as they continued down the long corridor.
Finally, the three of them reached the end of the corridor where there was a massive steel door, adorned with a multitude of warnings in various languages. Giselle raised an eyebrow in concern. There was no way that these warnings were an indicator of anything good.
“With so many warnings, is it even safe for us to go inside…?” Giselle asked, tapping her foot against the linoleum tile. The lanky man just smirked.
“Oh do not worry. I promise that everything will be alright. These warnings are mostly here to deter those who would try to access the room without proper clearance.” Giselle didn't buy this at all. The longer she stood in front of the door, the more uneasiness seeped into her mind.
“If you insist…” She brought a hand up as she cleared her throat. “So…are we going to go inside or not?”
“Ah yes, how rude of me to keep a lady waiting…” The man held up a remote and pressed it. Gears began to creak and turn as the doors slowly parted. Giselle gasped at the sight that was revealed.
In the back of the massive room, there was a large and incredibly beautiful purple crystal held up by a system of support beams. The Crystal was so large that there was a staircase to the near top.
Giselle covered her mouth in shock. She had never seen anything like this in her entire life. The mere sight of it filled her with awe.
“Pretty incredible, isn't it?” Caesar looked over at Giselle with a wide grin plastered on his face. For a moment, all Giselle could do was stare at him before returning to her transfixion on the crystal.
“It is…”
“It's called the Aliea Meteorite. It fell here several months ago.” The lanky man spoke. “We’re currently studying it and we believe that it holds immense amounts of power that would strengthen the average human tenfold!” He led Giselle and Caeser into the room, the door loudly closing behind them.
“That sounds absolutely fascinating!” Giselle beamed. The three of them walked up the stairs and approached the meteorite, bathed in the purple light that it emitted.
The lanky man’s smirk grew. “Now that we are here…allow me to discuss the reason you were brought to this location, Mrs. Campana.”
Giselle and Caesar both turned and looked at him curiously. Giselle couldn't help but feel a small sense of dread sink into her heart.
“Y-Yes…?” Giselle bit her lip, ashamed that she had stuttered. She quickly cleared her throat and regained her composure. “Why did you bring me here? I don't really see how I would have anything to do with this.”
The lanky man paced around the two of them, his grin growing more and more malicious.
“Well you see, my boss has undertaken a very advanced project and studying the Aliea meteorite is a very important branch of that project. The only problem is: we don't have anyone to test this on.”
Caesar blinked. “I don't see what this has to do with Giselle…?”
“Ms. Campana…if I remember correctly, you take in children off the streets and who are considered 'at risk', correct?”
Giselle jolted upright and looked at this man with fire in her eyes. “My children are off limits!! They are not your guinea pigs!!”
The man raised his hands in front of him defensively. “Don't get so worked up. You don't understand, your children will be granted a gift. They will have power beyond human understanding. There will be nothing they can't accomplish!”
Giselle’s breath hitched. “What's the catch!? There is always a catch!!”
“As part of the experiment we’re going to have them undertake certain missions with the end goal of bringing down the government….”
Caesar and Giselle both gasped at this, fear running through their veins. “W…What? That's absurd!! Are you a madman!?”
There was a chuckle. “Oh, you two don't understand…or do you…?”
“What are you getting at!?”
The man hummed, placing his hands behind his back. “Thirty years ago…Alessio Campana…”
Giselle gabbed the man by his collar and dragged him down to her eye level. The look on her face was nothing short of absolutely furious.
“You know nothing about him!” She shouted.
“Let the dead rest in peace!” Caesar followed. His rage was nearly on par with Giselle's. The mere thought of Alessio’s name possibly being tarnished sent them both over the edge.
“You two haven't even let me get to the point. The point being that you two know better than anyone what that man did. He sided against his own country in the last War, sending information to the enemy.”
Giselle took in a sharp breath and Caesar covered his mouth in shock. “H-How do you know this?” Giselle asked, her eyes wide.
“My boss did some digging around…honestly, you both know that accident thirty years ago was indeed no accident.” He circled behind the two of them and his voice dropped to a whisper. “Wouldn't you two want revenge against the people that killed him.”
Giselle stepped away. “You're lying. It was a freak accident and nothing more!!”
“Deep down you know that's a lie…don't you want to avenge the life of your husband…of the life that you were denied?”
“Not if it’s at the cost of my children.” Giselle glared at the man.
“Your children probably want just as much revenge as you, revenge against this cruel world that neglected and abandoned them. Come on Giselle, see the light here! Think about it: you, Caesar, and your children will be the starters of a revolution!”
“I…I can't…” Giselle backed up close to Caesar, who gave a resigned sigh.
“Giselle…maybe he has a point.”
Giselle turned sharply to face her friend. “Are you kidding me!? Don't tell me you are buying this nonsense!?”
Caesar turned and gripped tightly to the metal rails as he stared down at the meteorite. There was a focused look in his intense eyes. “I just...when I look at this meteorite…I can just imagine how much we could change the world…”
“Caesar…” Giselle’s eyed grew sorrowful as she walked over and stood next to him. She too glanced at the meteorite, and when she did, her heart started to pound. The more she stared, the more memories came back to her. Memories of being hurt, of watching her life fall apart, the stories of her broken and abandoned children. She closed her eyes and a few tears fell down her cheeks.
She too wanted the change that Caesar and this man spoke of.
There was a heavy silence that was finally broken by a soft sigh from Giselle.
“Alright…I'll do it…I'll agree with this.” Her hands gripped the rail so tightly her knuckles were white. “If it means avenging my husband, I'll do it…”
Caesar gave a nod. “And I will continue to offer my support as well.”
The lanky man gave a chuckle. “Excellent…excellent…don't worry Mrs. Campana…your children will be fine…”
“You did it, frati! You did it!!” A small pale girl with curly blonde pigtails and bright green eyes excitedly jumped around in place, a large smile plastered on her face. A few feet away a boy with tanned skin, not much taller that her, was knelt over panting, standing in front of a worn goal. He wiped away some sweat and dirt from his sunburned face as he slowly stood up straight. Surrounding him were several tattered soccer balls, covered in wear and tear and dirt. The two children were playing in an old lot with a makeshift soccer field of soft dirt and weeds.
“I-I did…I-I did it!!” The boy jumped up with a smile. “Just wait until mama sees it! She'll be so proud of me!” He brushed some dirt from his dark brown hair before dusting off his dark shorts and tank top.
The girl giggled and ran over to him, hugging him tightly. “I know I'm proud of you!!” She obviously didn't care that she was getting his dirt and sweat on her cute blue sundress.
The boy hugged her back, spinning in place. “Come on we should get home! Mama must be back from her trip by now.”
“Mmhm!” The girl took his free hand as he leaned down and picked up one of the balls. Together they left the field and began walking home together. They passed through a small market before arriving at their home, which was a large, elegant home built away into a secluded area near the outskirts of the city. It was far away from the bustle of tourism and daily city life. Other children were running around in the green grass or enjoying the pleasant weather. An older boy sitting on the porch acknowledged them with a wave and smile before he went back to reading a book with a girl around their age.
The two children walked over to the double front doors and were about to go inside, when something caught their attention. A black car with tinted windows pulled up into the drive.
“Who do you think it is…?” The girl asked. The boy turned to her and shrugged. Their attention quickly turned back to the car as the passenger door opened and Giselle exited.
Their eyes lit up and they excitedly ran up to her. “Mama! Mama! You're home!!”
“Mama! Frati mastered his super cool move!! You have to see it Mama!”
“Yeah Mama I really want to show you!!”
They looked up at Giselle with their bright eyes, but, their expressions quickly dropped when they noticed how solemn her face was.
“Mama…?” The boy tilted his head in confusion. “What's wrong, Mama…?”
Giselle smiled softly and patted the two on top of their heads. “You can show me later, my darlings…” She walked past them and entered the manor. The two children looked at each other with discouraged looks on their face.
“My, my, look at you two…” They flinched at the sound of a unfamiliar voice. When they turned they were met with dark eyes and an even darker smile.
The girl hid behind her brother, eyes going wide with fear and uncertainty. He, in turn, raised his arms up to shield her away from this rather creepy man.
“Oh don't worry I'm not going to hurt you…but things are about to change around here, my dears…” The man chuckled as he walked past them, following Giselle inside.
“Who was that…he scares me…”
“I don't know, but I promise I won't let him hurt you!” The boy turned to his sister and took her hand tightly in his own.
“Promise…”
“I promise!!”