Page 66 of Dark Shaman: Eternal Hope
"No, thank you." Kian lifted the coffee mug and took a sip. "I don't want my people anywhere near the Brotherhood. What about the exoskeletons? How many are ready for training?"
"We'll have ten functional exoskeleton units ready for testing when the recruits arrive. The training simulators are already installed and operational."
Kalugal was exceptionally efficient. When he put his mind to something, he got it done faster and better than anyone could. It was scary to think that his father was the same way or better.
"There's one problem," Kalugal continued. "The power requirements, which exceed the capacity of what the current facility can generate. We're installing additional generators, but long-term, we need to consider alternative energy sources. Can the firm that installed the mini nuclear reactor in the village install one on the island?"
"I'll check, but we will probably need to provide transportation. It's not something that you can easily put on a commercial ship or even easily export out of the country."
"That's why I'm leaving this to you," Kalugal said. "I don't have the right connections."
Kian chuckled. "And you are admitting that?"
"I have no problem admitting that I need help or accepting it, cousin. That's something that you struggle with."
"I do not." Kian let out a breath. "On some things I do. By the way, have you made any progress finding Darien?"
There was a pause. "Your mother told you about that?"
"Of course. She takes Areana's requests seriously and makes sure they are honored."
"I have an excellent private investigator working on it. Preston King is known as the best, but so far, he has had no luck. Darien must have changed his name and obtained a new identity. We have his old passport photo, and Preston is using facial recognition software to search for matches, but we both know that it is quite easy to manipulate images to avoid detection,especially when someone is deliberately trying to stay under the radar."
"It's to be expected. Darien is probably still hiding from the Brotherhood. Maybe ask William to run the photo through our resources? I suspect that we may have access to better data and software than your guy could ever hope for," Kian offered.
"I didn’t want to bother Roni when he’s so busy, but I will do that if Preston fails to find him." Kalugal sighed. "The other possibilities are less optimistic. He might have been found by Brotherhood operatives years ago or got killed some other way."
"I hope he's alive," Kian said. "It would mean a lot to both our mothers, even if Areana can't tell Tamira about her findings."
"I know. I'll call you after I speak with Jacki."
"Please do. I'll speak with Syssi."
Kian had barely set the phone down when it rang again, and this time it was Kalugal's brother.
"Good morning, Lokan," Kian answered. "I heard the good news about Jeremy."
"Did Julian call you?"
"He did. He said Jeremy's fever is holding steady and he's showing all the classic signs of transition."
"He's still conscious," Lokan said, and there was something in his voice—relief mixed with something else. Vindication, perhaps? "His temperature has been hovering around thirty-nine degrees Celsius for the past twelve hours. Julian says that's good for someone his age and level of health."
"Excellent. How are Spencer and Dylan taking it?"
There was a pause, and Kian could practically feel Lokan's mood shift through the phone. "Not well. They are disappointed, but not ready to call it quits yet. Onegus has volunteered to induce them, and they both seemed happy to accept his offer."
Kian doubted another attempt would prove more effective than the preceding ones, but he wasn't about to voice that opinion. "It's nice of Onegus to offer. He's a busy guy. When does he plan to do it?"
"He said they should wait a couple of weeks."
"Based on what?"
"He mentioned Roni and how long it took him and how many trials he went through. I think Onegus just wanted to give them hope."
"Hope is important," Kian said, though privately he wondered if false hope was crueler than acceptance. "Let them try again if they want to. We're in no rush to end the program. Keep me updated on the inductions."
"I will."
