Page 92 of Dark Shaman: Love Found
Now it seemed like a mistake.
A report flashed on his screen from the eastern barracks: COMMANDER DOWN. ENHANCED SOLDIERS ARE REBELLING.
Before Navuh could respond, another alert sounded: NORTHERN BARRACKS UNDER ATTACK.
Then another: CENTRAL GARRISON—ENHANCED SOLDIERS HAVE KILLED COMMANDERS.
"No," Navuh breathed, watching Zhao's worst fears materialize on the screens before him.
The door to his office burst open. Hakum stood there, his face pale. "My lord, the enhanced ones?—"
"I know." Navuh's fingers flew across the control panels. "Initiate island-wide lockdown. All barracks sealed, all sectors isolated."
Red lights began flashing throughout the compound as klaxons wailed. The island's sophisticated security system, designed to repel external threats, was now being turned inward to contain an internal one.
Navuh activated the island-wide communication system. His voice would reach every corner of his domain through the speakers installed in every building, every corridor, every training field.
"All enhanced soldiers, stand down immediately." He pushed his compulsion power into the words. "Return to your barracks and await further orders."
He watched the screens, waiting for the telltale signs ofcompliance—soldiers stopping mid-action, confusion replacing aggression as his will overwrote their own.
Nothing happened.
The enhanced soldiers continued their attacks, and from the looks of it, they weren't just rebelling; they were executing a carefully planned operation.
"Hakum," Navuh said, his voice deadly calm. "Mobilize all regular forces. Full combat deployment."
"Yes, sir."
Navuh returned to his screens, watching his empire convulse as the enhanced soldiers, his greatest achievement, became his greatest threat.
Zhao had been right about one thing: they truly thought themselves gods.
30
ELUHEED
The hotel bar was nearly empty at ten in the morning, just Eluheed, Tony, and the bartender who was rearranging the bottles on the shelf behind the bar for lack of anything better to do.
Eluheed nursed a coffee that had gone cold long ago, his eyes fixed on the entrance while Tony drummed his fingers against the bar in an increasingly agitated rhythm.
"They're late," Tony said for the third time, checking his watch.
"It's not like they need to show up at a certain time."
He was glad about the delay, still hoping that Zhao would stroll into the bar and start drinking early in the morning. He'd been hunting for the scientist each evening for the past week, but he hadn't seen him, so maybe he would have better luck in the morning.
After all, he was supposedly staying at the presidential suite, and he had to pass by the bar on his way out of the hotel.
Eluheed had tried to get to the top floor, planning to knock on Zhao's door, but the elevator required a special card to go to any of the upper floors, and the exit to the emergency stairs was locked. He might have been able to break down the door, but that would have brought the guards and achieved nothing.
"They are never this late," Tony said. "The convoy always arrives between ten-fifteen and ten-twenty. It's almost eleven o'clock."
"I'm sure there is a legitimate reason." Eluheed glanced at the bartender, who seemed absorbed in his task but was undoubtedly listening to every word. In Navuh's domain, everyone was a potential informant. "Perhaps the ladies had a heated discussion over breakfast and didn't notice the passage of time."
"Or perhaps something's wrong." Tony's leg bounced against the barstool. "I have a bad feeling about this."
Eluheed shared the unease but kept his expression neutral. The past week had felt like a gathering storm. Navuh had been demanding visions every day, but the universe was refusing to show Eluheed anything new. All he saw each time was the original vision of fire and soldiers fighting one another. The guards had been tense, though, as if everyone was waiting for something to happen, but the most disturbing thing had been Dr. Zhao's complete absence from the bar. Every evening for a week, Eluheed had come here hoping to find the scientist and ask him about the poison, but Zhao had vanished like a puff of smoke.
